‘Quick’. ‘Look’. ‘Top of the trellising’. And there they were, just two metres away, a pair of goldfinches. I knew that they were around, we had talked about them often, but this was the first time I had actually seen them, and in our own garden too. They were small (shorter than a robin), and…
Line of most resistance
It was a lovely spring afternoon and I sat sipping tea in the conservatory, calculating the amount of my time I spend procrastinating. The task was prompted by the sight of shirts, towels and smalls fluttering prettily on a washing line that I had just put up; a job that took 3 years. In the…
Spellbound
Though I have a lot of time for the written word, for me the appeal of the spoken word is the greater. Ideas from a good talk, lecture, or even a chat get into my mind with minimum interference. And spoken commentary has an immediacy that is seductive. Moreover, with talking there is the added…
Touching moments
There are a lot of special things about South Kensington tube station. First, it simply has history. The London Underground was the world’s first public underground service and South Ken one of its original stations - witness the bold, mid 1860s, wrought iron lettering over the entrance. Second, and at a more personal level, South…
Nul points
Our dog was an opportunistic, lovable rascal. She would often take herself off for walks, as dogs did in those days, and in her sorties managed to endear herself to countless neighbours. Although they knew full well that she belonged to someone else, in the hours she was away she would go into some of…
The fox, the heron and the financial adviser
We have often wondered what was knocking over the metal statue of a heron that stands on the garden table at the back of the house. Not every day, more like once a month, but even so a mystery. Now, thanks to the recent snowfall, the crime is solved - it is the local fox.…
Face values
When it comes to paintings, I want to feel at one with their colours and forms, be seduced into stopping and staring and be moved emotionally. And in all this it is the picture itself that is dominant. When, how, and by whom it was painted is of secondary importance, as indeed is its price.…
Friends reunited
My elder sister died last summer. Were she still alive I don’t think she would be too surprised to hear me describe one aspect of her character as that of an inveterate collector and hoarder, with strong magpie tendencies. Accordingly, her flat was filled with treasures. These have now been sorted and two particular treasures…
Sticks and stones
Forget the adage about sticks and stones, words can certainly hurt and they did just that, one evening before Christmas. Add in the effect of actions, with their capacity to speak louder than words, and the occasion had many of the features of a nightmare. A young couple, with their small child, had come to…
Great expectations
Living up to people’s expectations can be a challenge. We were out to dinner and after updating one another on families, touching on the financial crisis and on the forthcoming presidential election, conversation suddenly took a downward turn. Out of the blue, Pierre asked, "Tell me, as an Englishman, what do the English think of…
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