h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi Peanut

Alabaster is OK- though I don't find it as instantly clear when there are or are not new posts as my old Brunel.. But it has not been a good day- even worse because it is my wife's birthday.. Mind you she came to my study late last night to say that she may have lost her car keys (two sets for one car).. So we have been doing needle in a haystack hunting most of the day.

Off to bed to try to sleep off at least what's left of the day.

Nite

Cass

Cass,

I'm sorry it has not been a good day

I hope you found the cars keys at least

Sleep well

Peanut

Morning Peanut

Better for a long nights sleep.. Still no sign of the keys..Fortunately we still have mine, but we always like a spare.. About 10 years ago it cost us almost £50 to get a new Renault one- all the computer chip business. One can live in hope that these costs just may have come down- but if they still have to come direct from the manufacturer I have my doubts.. Anyway I feel a bit more like "ready for the struggle" today.

Have a good day.

Cass

Hi Peanut

You seem to have gone very quiet on h2g2.. Everything OK?

Cass

Morning Cass

No, not really I am right miserable, being all jolly in my personal threads seems fake and I don't want to drag other people down

That said I was going to drop in today,you are going to the ballet aren't you? I thought you were for your wife's birthday treat. I hope you enjoy yourself.

I'm not sure what to do about being here but just so you know this thread has been on my list of things that makes me want to stay.

It just might be that I am not around as much as normal for a while



Peanut

Hi Peanut

As I inferred I took the liberty of checking out your space and noted that you seemed to have rather given up on h2g2- following perhaps the unpleasantness over Edward etc.. I also noted your posting about psychological assessment.. I think that our mutual demons are one of the things that helps us to exchange across the generational and experiential divide.. I just hope that none of my postings has aggravated your own demons.

Cass

Hi Cass

Be assured that nothing you have said has affected my well being in a bad way.

It is just what is going on onsite that makes me not want to be here, when things are so negative and demoralising that does have an effect on me so I have learnt to back off.

Like I said this thread, getting to know you has been one of things that goes in my good column on my pros and cons list and I have no plans to leave altogether.

I enjoy and value our exchanges across the generational and experiential divide and those times when we just whitter away . I hope that it is the same for you

Peanut

Hi Peanut

Definitely.. I would send you some smilies but we do not appear to have them on this site.

Cass

Hi Peanut

Definitely.. I would send you some smilies but we do not appear to have them on this site.

Cass

Hi Peanut

Thinking about the recent negativity-- I am reminded of the "be careful what you wish for" remark... To my mind the elections of 7-9 days ago allowed people who have been moaning about recent government policies to look at their options.. and to my mind those who voted seem to have voted for "conservative" policies, while most people did not vote at all.

I think that both options are demoralising even, in fact, especially to those who have no faith in what the Coalition is trying to do.

Cass

PS Had a lovely family evening at the ballet.. First time really that we have been out like this "all grown up".. It was particularly pleasant to be in a ballet crowd- so much animal energy

Cass

It always cheers me up no end when you send me smilies

It sounds like you had a wonderful evening

I'm am just whizing through, off to Glastonbury and then to the levels for a little peak at the wetness of it all and in the hope that we will see a baby widgeon or something...

Back later

Peanut

Hi Peanut

It seems that I can do smiles if I just change my Preference setting back to Brunel.

Yes.. It really was a good evening.. and our daughter re-iterated how much she and her 'boyfriend' had enjoyed it when she phoned this morning to say that they had managed to get tickets for the two Proms that we can make this year. They are great Proms fanatics and this will be the third summer that we will (GW) be joining them for a couple of concerts.. As last night most of the time we end up wondering why we do not make more use of one of the greatest cities on Earth. Now that the congestion charge is from 6pm that fits in with driving up from here right into the heart of London: and metre parking is free after 6.30.



And of course we have our free OAP travel cards which we do not use as much as we should. My wife has a French phobia about filth in public places.

Enjoy mystical Glastonbury and the levels. We have sunshine.. What a difference!

Cass

Hi Cass

We had a lovely time in Glastonbury,successful shopping trip, I got a pair of flares which I have been looking for ages - I expect they take you back too

We didn't see any widgeons on the levels but came home with a bit of foraged frog-bit for the waterhole in my garden.

The sun has been out here all weekend so we went to the seaside to see how the cliffline on the Dorset coast had changed over winter and to go for a stroll and eat chips.

We came home with books, I came home with the Zealots of Masada from the second hand shelf, random read of the week and Hiccup got a heavily discounted book about human evolution. It is a huge hardback and she is really taken with it, result!

>

Peanut

Hi Peanut

Glad you had a good trip to Glastonbury.. Last year our son was helping to man the Cowshed Recording Studio in the Festival there-- as musician, studio technician and general odd-bod.. He also enjoyed the on site "University"..

Masada- long time since I thought of it. Sounds like an interesting read. Makes me think of our daughter in her primary years when she really hated sad endings.. We watched a series on TV based on Ann Franks diary, and she reproached me when it came to its end for having let her watch it when I knew the ending... Cruel Dad.

+ Human Evolution.. Hiccup is obviously getting herself prepared for the next phase.

As for us "next phase" means this week getting things wound up here. This time next week (God willing) we will be in our house in Burgundy, expecting to be away for 24-25 days. So I will be 'off line' just in case you wonder why I will have gone all quiet.

Nite

Cass

Hello Cass

Thank you for letting me know that you are going away, elsewise I would have worried about what I had said or that you were dead in a ditch...

I haven't started on Masada yet, although I know the ending, I was taken with this book because as flick through it looked like an account of the digs

Hiccup has been reading and yabbering away about her book, she has rebranded the tree of evolution, Homo erectus being the one that looks a bit like a Dr Who, (Tom Baker I think) so is the Dr Whoey one. 'Lucy' is the 'quite ugly one', a wee bone of light hearted contention, I think Lucy is beautiful

In fact she says as only a teenager can, I think all of them before 'the Dr Whoey' one are quite ugly, after that they look ok We have been having some interesting chats other than the attractiveness of our ancestors and that has been a pleasure

When you off?

Peanut

Hi Peanut

I try to let people know when I am not going to be around.. largely because of a particular moment when I left my first teaching post..Friday registration before the last week of the summer term my form Vice-Captain had remained quietly by the window during registration. He was off on a field trip the next week and I can still feel the shock sensation as we walked past my desk, putting down a leaving present, too overcome with emotion to speak.. I still have somewhere the post-card that he sent wishing me and my wife well.. It was a lesson in just how much a teacher could mean to children in such a school: and quite a new experience for me to feel that others might be attached to me..

In our case there had been a key moment the year before when I was put in charge of Blue House athletics, and I suddenly found that we were short of someone to run the 200 metres. This pupil had done the long jump and looking at him I said that surely he could run a competitive 200. He took me at my word, and I am sure that he saw me at the bend when he was just almost at the shoulder of one of our West Indian boys who was the South London sprint champion. I had told him that he was capable and he chased that sprinter all the way to the line, having never sprinted 200 before in his life. He thought that I was a genius to have seen his potential.. But that is what teachers are for.

Re Masada there was a great TV epic super-series many years ago-- possibly before your time. I associate Peter O'Toole with the obsessive Roman who was determined to take it.. I believe that the mass-suicide thing also occurred when the people of York or Norwich(?)turned on the Jews in the 12th century.

Its good that you and Hiccup are having good chats.. and she is sounding out her place in the whole "Family of Man".

Our bit of family "good news" is that our son finally took and passed his driving test on Monday at the age of 39! He was put off driving for so long because his great childhood friend- almost a brother (his sister being four and a half years younger at that time)- lost control at the wheel of a Mercedes car at 3am one morning not far from here, and rammed it into a tree. Our son spent a week or so in the hospital feeling sure that someone so strong would pull through.. He did not. When he married a couple of years ago, I felt that he was finally managing to put that behind him and start to get on with his life.

We are due off on Sunday.

Cass

By the way I see that we have now dropped out of the reckoning.



Cass

By the way I see that we have now dropped out of the reckoning.



Cass

oh noes, quick post more smilies