13 August 2011

 Alice had one of htr girls tea parties this afternoon. Alice No. 2 (Everard)-with her lovely dog Amber-dropped in mid-afternoon together with Di and Ros Zurlinden. The study is comfortably big enough to seat four people, other than myself, so we all sit round in a circle putting the world to rights over a cup of tea…

Predictably, we discussed the recent riots. Now, these guests are all intelligent people with minds of their own and all having opinions about what might be the best way to avoid such problems in the future. We all agreed that the basic problem was discipline, or rather lack of it, in the home and although we did not take a vote I surmise that had we done so there would have been a general agreement that bringing back National Service might well go at least a way to resolving the problem. Interestingly enough I heard on the evening news that some survey or other had come to the same conclusion.

Anyway these short interludes of intelligent discussion stimulates me and neatly break up the routine that would otherwise be relentlessly the same each day.

For another diversion I did, of course, have the fourth day of the third test match between India and England. Whilst my guests were with me I just turned down the sound keeping one eye on the laptop from time to time. The final chapter of this story can be quickly told. India having resumed overnight at 35 for1, lost Gambhir first ball to Anderson. Then, once Tendulkar was out for 40, the writing was on the wall. Despite a spirited finish by Kumar who smashed Swann into the stands three times plus a number of boundaries, the game was soon all over England the victors by an innings and 242 runs. This will automatically took them to the top of the ICC table as world champions. Former captains Michael Vaughan and Alec Stewart both believe that England will dominate test cricket for years to come having achieved the top of the world rankings.

Here is a rather gormless photograph of me taken with Mick’s mobile phone, however it is not me you should be looking at but my wonderful invention for smoking and drinking at the same time. You will see that the smoking stick is now mounted on a base sloping towards me and is secured in place by a magnet. Attached to this base is a removable extension which carries my drinking mug in a preformed hole and cut channel to accommodate the handles, If I am in an environment where I’m not allowed to smoke then the smoking stick can be removed and the base is designed just to house the cup.

 

 

 

 

And here is a picture of me using a smoking stick outside the Cricketers.