When a body is cremated it ends up as a jar of ashes (usually a plastic one). What then? It's not an item I'd choose to hang on to for long. Would you keep it on your mantlepiece? The scattering of ashes presents problems that you might not have considered until the time comes. Most…
One evening after school Steve called round with his latest purchase, Led Zeppelin II. I could not believe my ears. That opening riff! It was almost pornographic. Why hadn’t I heard this stuff before? Where had I been? The only pop album my parents possessed was Rubber Soul — admittedly not the worst place to begin…
After two lovely weeks in France we headed back to London on Friday 11 April. We drove north to spend a evening in Saint-Malo, the sun emerging just as we arrived. On our previous visit we'd seen that it would be possible to walk out on the causeway to the islet where Chateaubriand is buried…
My wife plays a Brahms intermezzo on the piano while I read the Times Literary Supplement. This sickening scene takes place at our holiday home in Charente. But there are worse things to be accused of than being middle-class. We returned from France on 27 February - and here we are again. They are forecasting…
Perhaps winter is nearly over. Perhaps not. It's not easy to tell in Britain, or anywhere in Europe for that matter. January seems to go on for an extraordinarily long time, followed by February, with its treacherous glimmers of spring, quickly and cruelly cancelled. It lifts the spirits to get away at this time of year.…
Tue: Very cold, even for January. Leave Herne Hill 11am, arrive Liverpool by train mid afternoon. To M&S to buy clothes for Mum (she has shrunk), then to lawyers to sign probate declaration for Dad's estate. Train to Birkenhead then taxi to Upton, arrive at house and turn on heating and water. Examine post: only…
Like the Christmas tree and "seasonal" cards (42 this year - not bad - including one received today from far-away East Sussex, postmarked 15 December), 2022 has been consigned to the bin. At least, that's what I'm trying to do. I hope for fewer traumas; obviously none at all would be better. When I looked…
The discovery of Herne Hill has been reported in the press. Again. It happens, on average, once a decade. Yet, like America, it was always in plain sight. Of course, Columbus, to his dying day, believed he’d sailed to the Far East, and in any case he spent almost all his time exploring the so-called…
We've never done this before, but the desire to save a few trees and the unreliability of the postage service where we live have made us turn to an online "review of the year" as an alternative to sending cards. So, from Colin and Anne, comes this personal view of the last 12 months, with…
I swim at an indoor pool every Sunday morning, except when I am away from home or have another reasonable excuse, such as I can't be bothered. Apart from walking, it is the only regular exercise I take. As I plough up and down, which I find intensely boring, I need to have something to…
The Wight Stuff 