Arts
Postcard From Edinburgh
Gentleman and lady travellers of a certain age may be divided into two tribes: Princess or Market. I’ve always been a Princess man. Let me explain. Arrival at Edinburgh Waverley always drew me up the [more…]
Culture
20th Century
American Journey 1952, Part Two – Providence
Over the main entrance of Providence City Hall is a bust of one Roger Williams, the founder of this city. You can see another representation of him in Roger Williams Park, where yesterday the youth [more…]
20th Century
Postcard From Peter Hitchens, Part Five
I’ve been following Daily Mail columnist and author Peter Hitchens – literally. The surprise being we only recently fell into correspondence. Both of us are keen on railways and church, enjoyed minor public school and [more…]
Culture
OTF Party: What Makes/Made Us Quintessentially English/British?
“Being British is all about driving a German car to an Irish theme pub to drink Belgian beer then going home buying an Indian takeaway to sit on a Swedish sofa in front of a [more…]
Culture
A View From They/Them Greenhouse; We’re All Non-Binary Now…..innit?
Things are moving on apace. The recent spell of decent weather’s seen a growth spurt right across the board, so much so that I have most of the tomatoes in the ground and there’s been [more…]
20th Century
Going-Postal Eurovision Song Contest Special
Who could have thought in the middle years of the twentieth century that the then-nascent Eurovision Song Contest could, a mere seven decades hence, be described by serious commentators as ‘noncing s***’? Albeit the commentator [more…]
Culture
An English to English Dictionary
I have long wondered if a dictionary existed that translates the bastardised version of the English language used in America to our original version. That bloke Webster has a lot to answer for, compiling his [more…]
Arts
My Elderly Parents
This is the tale about looking after my parents in their final years. I hope this helps those facing this difficult time. This is stuff that worked for me. It may not work for you [more…]
Authoritarianism
A View From The Greenhouse; Fear & Loathing In Dumfries & Galloway, Hate Crimes….Innit?
It was great to meet up with old friends and meet some new ones at the “Northern” get together. The more intrepid amongst the august gathering braved a short, if wet, walk down (and back [more…]