No matter where you go in the world, you still have to take yourself with you.
The concepts of time and space revisited
The Kissing Stool
The space outside our small bedroom window is also underneath the stairs which lead to my landlord's house above our ground floor apartment. There is a partial view of the orange orchard across the road, and the hills beyond, recently and fleetingly decorated with the pale pink and white fluff of the almond blossom. A... Continue Reading →
Fried Cabbage
I love it when I get e-mails from Angel. Angel is a bad speller, but that does not matter. Most of her e-mails are incredibly wicked cartoon jokes. They are like chocolate bars. Either I save them as a reward after completing an arduous task or I gobble them up all at once. The jokes,... Continue Reading →
A failed ascetic awakes
I was strangely drawn at a young age to the concept of asceticism. Perhaps it was the collocation of living as a child in a country at war, where people survived against the odds in an environment of economic sanctions, and those ridiculous cotton dresses which passed for school uniforms, over which we were permitted... Continue Reading →
Allow me to introduce myself
Call me old-fashioned, if you will. I like to be introduced when I meet people I have hitherto not encountered, even if I perform the introduction myself. Thus, the way is paved for the possibility of a sharing of common interests, whether in business, or for the delightful purposes of friendship.Upon introduction in the real... Continue Reading →
How to wash the dishes
There is a BBC comedy skit program where a typical farmer fellow comes out of a barn and announces, "This year, I shall mainly be wearing Dolce&Gabbana.". He turns heel in his galoshes, returns to the barn and shuts the door. I am fond of quoting variations on this theme, by way of light relief... Continue Reading →
Ebbelwei Express
Well, sitting on an express tram, getting rapidly inebriated on cider, and depending on porosity, soaking in history at the same time is certainly an option to consider. Just think, I might even be given to giggling.AllisonAwake and utterly sober on this 01.01.11Note: the word or phrase in bold appeared in my previous blog.For the uninitiated (whose... Continue Reading →
A marvellous invention
My father, born 1935, often waxed lyrical about the marvels of aeronautical flight. On such occasions we were given to giggling, my sister and I. It is a well-worn source of amusement, which has not detracted my father one iota from the wonder of it all. The funniest thing is that he is right; it... Continue Reading →
Lucky Number Seven
I am reminded, as I take my first sip, of the cellar at the Grand Hotel in Grahamstown (in South Africa; the country, not the region, which, by the way, inhabitants refer to as Southern Africa). For those who do not know, this treasure of wines, under low wooden-beam ceilings of various heights which leads... Continue Reading →
Incurably curious. Curiously incurable.
I might as well get it out of my system now; confess, if you will. I love words. I love reading dictionaries. [If I were making a speech at a golf club, say, I would have lost about ninety per cent of my audience already. It is possible to love words and golf, or books and... Continue Reading →
That elusive pair of jeans 