I am not a good patient. Active people generally make very poor patients and as it is only the lure of unwritten words which keeps me still for very long, I feel terribly sorry for anyone assigned to look after me when I’m ill. It can’t be a welcome task. I had several nurses during […]
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A funny sort of Mother's day
It’s been a funny sort of Mother’s day. I’ve had all sorts over the years. I’ve had the ones where I’ve spoilt my mother with flowers and cards, with breakfast in bed and a mess to clear up. I’ve had the ones I stubbornly ignored, hating the absence of cards from the children I had […]
Kill the puppy!
The children love films. They have a range of favourites; many modern animations and some classics like Bedknobs and Broomsticks. A few of these are watched again and again, which pleases the children greatly and drives me quietly insane. Inevitably the repetitive nature of their viewing habits means they pick up certain phrases, which subsequently erupt from […]
A literary lunch
With journalist Adam Edwards The Cotswold Life author lunch was just as it should have been; a delicious mix of writers old and new, independent booksellers and lovers of the region’s favourite magazine. The Close Hotel, Tetbury, was the perfect setting with staff who couldn’t do enough for us. I sank my first champagne cocktail […]
Tumble dryer fluff
My husband asked me to show the nanny how to clean the filter in the tumble dryer. “It’s supposed to be emptied every time it’s used – I don’t think she’s ever done it.” For some reason remonstrating with the domestics has become my responsibility. I’m not quite certain how this happened, but any dirty […]
Stocking tops
I work in a rather male-dominated organisation, with a hierarchy which is pyramid-shaped rather than pear-shaped. We have a strict dress code and a high regard for formality which means everyone ends up looking the same. I quite like that – it saves me searching for my personal style, which is buried somewhere beneath three […]