Ask me to read an article quickly and then to recall the key elements and it would be beyond me. Spelling too is very testing, and taking in the facts presented in class or when revising (nowadays in French) takes me ages compared to the time others need. With the aid of tricks learned over…
The unforgotten sound
Without prompting, one of the dinner guests tapped on his glass, asked for quiet and launched into a monologue. His chosen subject - the uniqueness of sounds. He talked about them in terms of their commercial value. He was, he declared, speaking as a marketing man. There was no way of checking his assertions, but…
Double vision
The train was almost empty when my journey started. A few stations later I looked up to find a woman sitting opposite. Though she looked familiar there was a problem. For years I have got into muddles when meeting people, so I needed to be careful. Here was a pretty, young redhead who I thought…
Grauniad of the english language
I imagine most of us have a favourite daily newspaper and for many years mine was the Guardian. It is not everyone's ideal - at my local supermarket the height of the Guardian's pile each morning is less than half that of the Daily Mail - but it worked for me. Not only was it…
A close run thing
Last week we were in the headlines. We watched from afar as the BBC told the UK of freezing weather hitting Canada, and we were there, bang in the middle of it all. We were staying in a small cottage in a forest just two-hours north of Toronto in our son Joshua's new, 'self-built' home. …
Tidings of comfort and joy
My wife and I are both atheists so it might seem odd that each year we send Christmas cards or perhaps more precisely, seasonal greetings cards. But it is an important part of our family life, as it was for my own parents, also atheists, although we send out only a fraction of the 400…
Parental guidelines
The unspoken bond amongst parents was in evidence again last week when at the station I found myself moving back from the platform edge. I was daydreaming when I became aware of a conversation somewhere in the background. A young woman was explaining to her small son that when waiting on a platform one should…
Table talk
Our final topic was perhaps an odd one to tackle over mid-morning coffee and anyway, in the end, nothing was actually resolved. Frank and I had met for one of our occasional coffees, initially convened to review the progress of a project we were both involved in. That business done, it was on to more…
Ghost train
I am not a man who is easily frightened. To be more precise, I have never been someone who suffers from classical phobias so have no concerns about being in open or closed spaces, nor am I made anxious by being in the company of spiders or mice. I don't get worried by dreamed-up fears,…
Another day at the office
For several days we tracked the progress of St Jude as the storm moved towards England and Northern France. We were away in Canada when he first appeared in the news. We watched with increasing interest as over days, and as if in slow motion, the saint gradually gathered energy and press coverage. The picture…
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