There has
been a great leap forward in the number of Followers since Franklin
Today is my
sister’s 76th birthday. She’s catching up with me fast. Happy
Birthday, Helen. Our mother always said it was her best Christmas ever – she
had to get everything done well in advance, and she did. A healthy baby under the Christmas tree was a
welcome plus.
I think we
overlapped at Oberlin only by a year, Rommy Linney and I – he was a towering
figure when I was a freshman. He was on stage at a welcome session in my first
few days. He told us, at one point, to turn around and shake hands with the
person behind us. We all tried to do it, and then all laughed. I think of that
moment often, in relation to Christmas. It’s fun giving people things, and
imagining in advance how their faces will light up when they unwrap our present
and discover the very thing they wanted. Less easy to bear in mind that one
will, oneself, be on the other end of such exchanges and that one’s own reaction
will be equally necessary to the jollity of the moment.
Knitting:
the brioche scarf has about five inches to go. This evening might polish it
off.
Kate
Davies’ book went on sale at 8 a.m. this morning. Now, at 9:10, she says
she’s sold out!
Christmas:
once when my mother was moving house, she grumbled to a neighbour over the
garden fence about all she had to do. Start with the job that bugs you most, he
said. It was good advice. So yesterday I wrapped my sister’s present, as well
as polishing off the rest of the USA-bound Christmas cards. Will I get to a
post office with them today? The local one closed some years ago. I think they explained at the time that they were doing it for my greater convenience. Or will I be required to devote all available time and
energy to getting my husband to a routine diabetic retinopathy examination at
the Eye Pavillion this afternoon?
My husband points out that Laura Linney played that very nice American girl who has to choose her brother over Karl in "Love, Actually." That's the sort of thing he knows.
ReplyDeleteJean, Kate's book is still available. There was a computer glitch, now fixed.
ReplyDeleteDawn
Humility will get you nowhere here, Jean. You are an excellent writer and delightful read. My weekday routine begins with fetching breakfast at the cafe and settling down to read you before starting work. I miss you when you fly off to Strathardle or other locales but comfort myself with the thought of the stories that will follow. Your knitting woes are woes we all share at one point or another. Will there be enough yarn? Will the pattern be appropriate? Will it fit? When will the endless stockinette end?
ReplyDeleteHugs!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJean- I've been reading since Franklin's post. I love your writing. It's nice to see little peaks into another's day, that they are having the same wants, needs and meet the same challenges.
ReplyDelete