To be told that Terrassa was warmer than Castelldefels is an affront to nature and is not something that I can abide. There was sunshine today but not enough to justify even sitting outside and pretending to enjoy the warm sunshine.
The lie-in this morning was not so extended as to qualify for that appellation but it was still a couple of hours later than I would normally get up so it seemed like a luxurious self-indulgence. I am still not attuned to the whole concept of the lie-in. Perhaps it goes against the partial acceptance that I have of the so-called Puritan Principle by which I almost live.
I have to say that my adherence to this principle is almost luxurious in the way that I cherry-pick the elements that fit my essentially selfish attitude towards ideologies. I seem to have missed the inclusive nature of sticking to an ideology as a way of life and instead roam free and interested through a range of sometime conflicting life-style theories to find the most appetising pieces of each and then stick them together by force and produce a theoretical metaphor which I find congenial to style my life around.
So if I had to describe my moral motivations I would need to outline a Judaic-Christian base (in an Anglican sense) heavily influenced by Humanism (an aggressive form inherited from my Dad) with a little historical Socialist colour; a soupcon of half understood Oriental mysticism relying almost exclusively on translations of Lao Tzu; a tinge of Ruskinian fascism in the nicest sense; a dash of “true” Communism which has not yet existed in the world; an overlay of what I understand High Culture to be; a twist of exclusivity; a pinch of Family Wisdom; an underlining of self-interest and a belief that Beethoven’s 7th Symphony is one of the finest pieces of music ever written (especially the second movement) while underpinning all is the crucial and defining fact that I could have bought Hockney’s “A Bigger Splash” if I had really meant it and milked the relatives for the money! It is only fair that at least one part of one’s ideology should haunt one!
The Family has made its appearance and individual members seem enthusiastic about my idea to invade Wales en mass in early July of this year. Carles will have forgotten his early memories of the city and Mark has yet to visit Cardiff. With the recent redevelopment of the city those who have been to the city previously will have a lot more to see now and they can compare their memories with their present experiences.
The primary purpose of the return to Cardiff is actually to go to London on a special visit to the British Museum to take Louise. This needs a degree of organization but this will only be one day in the visit and I would like to stay for a week and see all those people who I miss.
This however, is in the far future and I cannot think coherently beyond this month, as my brain tends to close down when I think of the extent of the term and the year still to go!
This next week is going to be testing as we are continuing our series of Mock examinations; examination preparation and other examinations – so there will be a frantic period of marking at every available opportunity to try and get everything done before our own painfully set deadlines.
Having recently (this morning) discovered how to make my telephone into a loud speaking radio I am determined to discover all the elements that make my phone so impossibly expensive. I still have not read the instruction booklet and therefore my incredibly sophisticated phone is just that – a phone.
Admittedly I do read books on it; I have taken and sent photographs and play solitaire (I must be the only user of my type of phone in the world who actually bought, with money, his version of solitaire) but I feel that there must be electronic worlds connected with my phone that I am not tapping into. I shall make it one of my tasks to explore the phone more and thereby justify the cost!
Today started in a dull and dispiriting way but the weather perked up towards lunchtime and then faded away into a depressing coldness. The colour of the sea was a lifeless grey but that didn’t deter intrepid visitors from filling up all the parking spaces along the front.
Our local council, in its wisdom, has taken away one lane from the road in front of the beach and made it into two protected cycling lanes. There is a line of what looks like sleeping armadillos set into the road to ensure that motorists keep to their assigned lane.
The parking spaces have been drawn at an angle so that cars should reverse into them to fit. It means that the whole of the traffic system stops while a person parks. It also means that the car has to go past the space to reverse into it. This has already led to a few disagreements and with just a few people attempting to park it slows things down considerably.
What it is going to be like in the summer defies thought, though I am sure that you will need the patience that comes with years of rigorous study of Zen Buddhism to rise above the frustration that is a guaranteed accompaniment to any road reorganization let alone one which reduces the road by 50%.
Something to look forward to!
No comments:
Post a Comment