It’d be Jolly Hockey Sticks, if Z were not allergic to hockey sticks

It was a rather jollier day than I’d expected.  Al phoned to suggest that Squiffany and Pugsley come round for a while – Dilly is feeling a bit fragile and he didn’t want to leave her, and they really needed to get out and be active for a while.  So I took them to the playground and we all swung on swings and frolicked generally.  They stayed for lunch and helped me clean the kitchen, and we went in the garden for a bit, and Squiffany did some sums (she set the questions, answered them, marked them and awarded a star; she is destined to be a teacher, I suspect) while Pugsley played on my phone.

You know, I expect, that Apple Stores have computers at child height equipped with children’s programmes.  Smart.  They also have loads of iPads, iPhones and computers that anyone can use for as long as they want.  Very smart.  Slightly worrying in a way – “there are more ways of killing a cat than by choking it with cream.  But I’m not sure that it’s not the best way.” as Saki put it (approx, darlings, it was Hermann the Irascible, The Story of The Great Weep if you want to look it up, which I can’t quite be bothered to).

Anyway, I went to see Dilly and she’s fine, just that she really needed a day lying down.  Hadrian is being a most accommodating baby.  He sleeps for three hours, wakes with a polite whimper, feeds with enthusiasm, pees and poos (sorry darlings, but it’s what the young people say and who am I to argue?) as soon as his nappy is removed, looks about cheerfully for a bit and then sleeps for another three hours.

In the afternoon, I went to visit Dave and, unlike the first occasion when I was too polite to look around, I peered at all his furnishings.  The Wall Of Photos looks jolly good and so do his paintings.  And the garden is excellent, those granite setts set off the path nicely and the plants are doing nicely.

This evening, I made asparagus risotto, having saved the cooking water from yesterday for the stock.  Frugal, me, you see.  Non-wasteful.

What else? … Rog mashed me again on Facebook Scrabble.  I can’t remember the last time I beat him.

Anyway, tomorrow I’ve got Nadfas in town, but I’ve lost my programme card so I don’t know the subject of the lecture, and then I’m having my hair cut, which it richly deserves.  After that, I’m footloose for the rest of the day.  Gosh.  Splendid.

11 comments on “It’d be Jolly Hockey Sticks, if Z were not allergic to hockey sticks

  1. Dave

    My friend Phil (you may have looked at his blog) let his 2 year-old daughter play games on his iPad, and then found she’d been ordering updates to the games on-line. He discovered when the bill arrived. It was yesterday’s blog-post.

    Reply
  2. Z

    It is, Gledwood, and I enjoy cooking it too. Sitting by the stove reading while I stir.

    Thanks, Ivy. It’s half-term, so I’m taking advantage of it. I’ve got to do some more work over the weekend as Ofsted are bound to turn up before long, but at present it’s low-ley.

    I read it, Dave. Some children’s games are outrageous, cheap or free to download but then a lot of expensive enhancements. It was quite shocking that one can spend £35 in a short time, presumably within one game. The sign-in lasts 15 minutes so that an app has time to download.

    It was a physical rather than mental thing, so I hope the rest will have done her good. It’s beautiful out.

    Reply
  3. The Boy

    Footloose on a day like today, lovely.

    The last time I put the veg cooking water aside to do something virtuous I came back to it at the weekend to find interesting colonies of things growing on the top… Best of intentions and all that.

    Reply
  4. Z

    It doesn’t keep long, we’d had the asparagus on Monday when Ro and Dora came for lunch.

    Lovely day, isn’t it – I’ve been pottering round the garden. Not working in it.

    Reply
  5. Sarah

    I too love cooking risotto, I find it very comforting.

    Interesting what you say about nosing around a friend’s house on the second visit. I’m exactly the same. The first time, I sit politely, the second time I look at things and ask questions.

    Reply

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