My typical day, by Nick:
- Wake up at 4 am, worrying about things I don't need to worry about
- Wade through all the scare stories, politicians' lies, celebrity gossip and wardrobe failures in the media
- Realise once more how little I can do about refugees, earthquake victims, welfare cuts and bombing raids on foreign countries
- Watch a brilliant TV series from Norway/France/Germany and wonder why British TV is never as good
- Wonder what is the best way of eating pizza - slices or small chunks?
- Wonder why anyone buys a £50 bottle of wine when a £5 bottle from Sainsbury's does the job
- Listen yet again to Frank by Amy Winehouse
- Press on with Brightness Falls by Jay McInerney
- Go for my usual daily walk in steady drizzle
- Plan tonight's meal, as Jenny's now in England (no, not pizza)
- Do the bare minimum of housework (unless visitors are expected)
- Ponder the meaning of life
- Reflect on the extraordinary variety of human faces
- Dodge swarms of parents and offspring at the two nearby schools
- Wonder whatever happened to (insert celebrity's name here)
- Wonder how we accumulated so many bowls/dishes/ramikins
- Wonder why I am not yet a National Treasure
- Survive another day without buying a smartphone or taking a selfie
- Survive another day without an espresso machine
- Puzzle over which of the 13 clocks and watches in the house is showing the correct time
Maybe #1 and #2 are related? Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteJennifer: No, the worries are more about personal stuff like things I have to do at work, whether I'll run out of money in the future, my slightly frail 93 year old mum, etc etc.
ReplyDeleteBut if you had a smartphone, you'd always know the correct time!
ReplyDeleteHaving children takes your focus off world problems and gives you a whole other realm of worries closer to home.
Bijoux: Very true, but probably I'd hardly ever use it.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you're right about children. They're pretty demanding and pretty good at shutting out everything except them!
WOW.
ReplyDeleteso many similarities nick.
I also rise at 4 most days. although...
since I retired at 60 I can sleep in now if I choose.
and that's simply wonderful.
as you know from my latest post... I worry too much about stuff I have absolutely no control over!
and with our swampland of tv programs...
seriously... one of them is even titled 'swamp people' ...
we think ANYTHING by the bbc is better quality! LOLOL!
and I suspect you might be a national treasure to some people who know you. just ask jenny on a good day. :)
Tammy: The BBC still has quite a reputation abroad, but here in the UK it looks pretty dumbed down and going for the lowest common denominator. BBC2 used to be the intellectual channel, but now it's just the same old rubbish as everywhere else.
ReplyDeleteI recommend "Rake" an Oz series a blogfriend recommended to me. I may have seen most of those good European series. Netflix has been a treasure for me.
ReplyDeleteAs to your list, I don't think I can relate at all. I've basically disconnected from global politics and replaced with local where I fantasize I have some power to do good.
I try not to worry by immersing myself in writing/knitting design/photography/entertaining. But I do worry very annoyingly about the small stuff that goes effing wrong out of spite for me.
XO
WWW
The average day sees me up at 5.30am, let the dogs out, feed and release the sheep,feed the poultry and collect eggs.
ReplyDeleteBreakfast - unless we have to be off on the bus to the capital for a hospital appointment.
Telephone mother.
Read the press,read the internet news, clean up the glaringly obvious.
Make cake and biscuits to fill empty tins. Make lunch.
Clear lunch.
Do paperwork; dispense cake and biscuits to visitors.
Feed and close up sheep and poultry.
Feed dogs.
Watch the box - if the internet speed is up to it.
Shower...bed with book.
Thrilling,isn't it.
Most of our clocks synchronize with the cesium clock in Boulder, Colorado. It's supposed to lose less than a second in 100 million years. That's good enough for us. :)
ReplyDeleteApparently the clock at the UK's National Physics Laboratory is even better, less than a second in 138 million years. (As of 2011.) Clearly there's some competition going on.
www: Haven't heard about Rake. We don't use Netflix but must investigate....
ReplyDeleteI like to know what's going on around the world even if there's f*** all I can do about it. I do intervene in local politics now and then if there's something I feel really strongly about. Like the DUP's diehard resistance to gay marriage.
Helen: That sounds quite prosaic, but then I know there are all sorts of fascinating thoughts going through your head as you feed the poultry and make the cakes!
Jean: The only clock in our household that synchronises with a global clock is the clock in my 21 month old car. Otherwise it's the battle of the clocks, all showing a slightly different time.
ReplyDeleteYou can ponder the meaning of life all you like, but you'll always end up with the same conclusion - Life of Brian was a far better Monty Python film.
ReplyDeleteDave: As it says in the Book of Brian (13th edition): Always look on the bright side of life.
ReplyDeleteI go to bed about 3 am and rise, usually in pain, at around 9 am. I immediately regret at having missed most of the day, and resolve to go to bed earlier in future and get up before the birds wake up.
ReplyDeleteThe first thought of the day is "Is it today that the Grim Reaper will be calling round?". Check my emails and the news to see which famous personality has kicked the bucket overnight, then breakfast and a little lie down.
After lunch I check my bank balance online to see if any hacker has stolen my millions, and breath a sigh of relief that it's all still there (as usual). Then dinner, usually a "Bird's Eye" frozen one, warmed up to perfection in the Microwave, and another power nap until pub time.
When I'm kicked out the pub, it's back to my miserable lonely little hovel and the Internet where I write silly comments on other peoples blogs until about 3 am.
Next day, ad infinitum . . . . It's a great life if you don't weaken.
Keith: Your day is far too exciting. If you don't calm down, your health could be at serious risk. Discovering that the celebrity you especially wanted to die is still alive could cause a fatal apoplexy. Much safer to spend the day doing jigsaw puzzles.
ReplyDelete