tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49311744314422994542024-03-14T07:59:41.742+00:00Anita BurghThis is the blog of writer Anita BurghAnita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.comBlogger86125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-83863145122644988852014-11-24T12:01:00.000+00:002014-11-24T12:01:40.819+00:00What Is Good Taste? <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18.0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">W</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">hat is good
taste?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As someone who married, as it is
so quaintly put, <i>out of my class</i>, it was something that for far too long
bothered me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Young as I then was, I was
concerned, out of all proportion that I should not choose things that were in
bad taste. My snobby in-laws automatically assumed that I would not have any
idea of culture or social values and behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">How,
with her background, could she possibly know what is acceptable and what is
not,</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> they
muttered behind my back - with satisfaction, not sympathy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were times when I am sure they
semaphored gleefully to each other that I had made yet another social gaffe,
taste or otherwise, for they had no intention of telling me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It became quite a hobby with them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It
would be nice to think that this was just something that happened long ago;
that such snobbery was past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But you
have only to think of the Essex girl jokes that still pop up to know that such
attitudes continue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And now we have -
Elections, White Van, St George and Rochester – there’s no need to say more.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, something else has
happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To the old class differentials
have been added another - you have to be </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">cool</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> to belong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have to know what to wear, eat, say,
enjoy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s like a club to which new members
are not welcome, which has a set of rules that mark you as belonging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, be assured, no one is going to enlighten
you if your face doesn’t</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t fit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As
in my time the areas remain the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Food is one, and how it is eaten another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jokes about fish knives still abound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Say serviette and you are still labeled
immediately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And just think of the
constantly changing fashions in food - mascarpone, balsamic vinegar, polenta
etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Invariably when I</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m taken out in London these days I
have to ask what many things on the menu are - thus<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ensuring that I am regarded with pity, by my </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">with it</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> acquaintances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The very act of asking sets you apart - it
just is not done to show you are ignorant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you admit you like scampi and chips or worse chicken in a basket, or
that you prefer your veg cooked and not al dente you are marked as a NOS - <i>not
our sort</i> (the codes of my day are still in use. MIF - <i>milk in first - </i>is
another I have recently heard still being used.) Why on earth should one be criticized
for eating what one likes, why can</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t you be chary of </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">foreign</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> food?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heavens! Most foreigners show a deep and
abiding suspicion of our food, so why is it so chic immediately to like
something that</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s often
ordinary fare elsewhere?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Years
ago white shoes and handbags were deemed beyond the pale - no lady would wear
such offending articles – the late Princess Margaret did, bless her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought that one had gone, but no, only the
other day, in a scathing fashion article, I read that<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- white shoes and Essex girls go hand in
glove, and therefore are tasteless.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
what is nicer than a young woman, with nice legs and a glowing tan looking lovely
in her white stilettos?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Am I alone?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Blue
eye shadow - wear it at your peril!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Princess Diana wore it constantly, but, come to think of it, there were
quite a few snide remarks about her when she did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why is someone who prefers it laughed out
of court: who was it that suddenly decided it was unfashionable?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who was he or she, I</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d like to know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A smart young woman told me in the nicest
possible way that my blue eye shadow was not on, </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Why?</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I asked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had no answer, just that it if one wanted
to be stylish it was never worn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But it</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s grey,</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I pointed out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, that</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s all right then, I was astonished
to hear her reply.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Could anything be
sillier?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Fabrics
show taste apparently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Man made -
ghastly; plastic - appalling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Natural -
divine!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I wear silk or linen I look a creased mess
within minutes, I for one am thrilled at the expertise of the manufacturers
these days when it</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s hard to tell until you read the label.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And who is the guru who declares which
trainers are </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">in</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> which </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">out</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">, involving parents in endless
frustration and expense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is someone with
vested interests taking us all for a ride?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If
you like a painting that is reproduced a thousand times, for example Constable</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s The Hay Wain, or Shepherd</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s elephants, you are sadly lacking
in artistic appreciation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who says?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A pile of dung is more artistically valid?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh p.l.e.a.s.e!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Television
is another minefield.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Have you noticed
how many claim never to watch and yet know all the latest catch phrases?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was once sneered at for being a Coronation
Street addict - but of course that is now a cult programme and has become
acceptable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I must be guilty of inverted
snobbery since I rarely watch it these days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>A
friend of mine who prides herself on her sophisticated and exquisite taste in
all things was telling me about a black and white film she had seen, it was in
Polish and about miners, her description was vague to say the least.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It sounds boring to me,</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I commented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Ah, but it had sub-titles.</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Does that make it less boring?</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It makes it genre,</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> she purred.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Admit
to liking </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
Sound of Music,</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and wait for the sniggers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>When
I lived in France I often asked visitors, travelling from England, to pick up a
copy of Hello! Magazine for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As often
as not they said, </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You don</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t read that thing, do you?</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So how come every copy that arrived had obviously been read from cover
to cover?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Closet Hello readers to a man.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And
the home?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dadoes were out, then in, now
out again as they appear in ordinary people</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s homes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Austrian blinds the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As for three piece suites - want to be
regarded as with it, abounding in good taste - best ditch it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we won</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t go into ducks on walls, loo paper
holders, bathmats shaped like feet - one could go on and on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We
haven</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t even
touched on language with its </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">pardons</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> out and </span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">what’s?</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Its looking glasses instead of mirrors, its sofas and not settees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once when my husband’s terrifying grandmother
visited I had laid the table with infinite care.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The knives and forks were lined up, in order,
like soldiers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I placed the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>dessert spoon and fork across the top of the
setting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perfection I thought.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I was unaware you were running an
hotel,’ she said, removing the spoon and fork; she made room for them with the
others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was flummoxed since I did not
know what she was talking about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later my
husband explained to me that my way was how a restaurant would lay a table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Why didn’t you tell me?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I didn’t think it was important,” he
sensibly replied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She stayed the week
and each meal we had the same ritual, I put them where I wanted them to be, and
she altered them to what she wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was a form of a truce.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Who
decides these things?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where do such
rules and regulations come from?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who
originally had the audacity to tell people what they should and shouldn</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t like, use, say or do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish I could meet them on a dark night for
all the anguish they caused me when young and scared of putting a foot
wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does upset me is that it is
still bothering folks, those who, like me, felt out of their depth and insecure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The number of times people ask me what is
right and what is wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is depressing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I
feel like starting a club - the Ants - the Anti Taste Society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whose members join me in eating what they
want, dressing how they choose, admire what they like, say what they please .<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">On my wall
is a set of, no not flying ducks but flying elephants and in my garden - horror
of horrors to my taste obsessed friends - garden gnomes lurk!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Come join me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 36.0pt; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: 36.0pt; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">This article first appeared in the CGA.</span></div>
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Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-6457096590633148792014-08-10T13:14:00.002+01:002014-08-10T13:14:55.976+01:00Looitis and Me<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US">What
is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Looitis</i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a reasonable question for, though many
suffer from it, often they are unaware <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that
they do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basically it is a fear if being
loced in the lavatory. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my life I
have been afflicted with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">looitis.</i> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can strike anywhere, abroad or at
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I grow older it is getting
worse which is a constant source of amusement to friends and family.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have lost count of the Gents I have
mistakenly entered sometimes with quite an aggressive response, no doubt they
think I am interested in their dangly bits – as if?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Old ladies, in extremis hurl themselves at
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The police were nearly called to a
German Beer Cellar after I had blundered into the Gents for the fifth
time!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not simply the locks I can
prove to be death to the int</span></b><b><span lang="EN-US">eriors too.
Taps have a tendency to come off when I touch them and the resultant
flooding leads to unpopularity. I broke
a loo pan once by standing on it in a vain attempt to see if anyone could rescue
me – those cubicles are quite small and claustrophobia can easily set in. Hand dryers die on me. And I have to abandon any loo which has
revolving doors – you don’t want to know!</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recently I was at the BRI hospital in
Bristol – a wonderful and caring institute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The call of nature became evident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A nurse insisted on guiding me though I said I could manage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There in all its porcelain splendor stood the
Disabled Loo, the sight of which gladdens the heart of anyone who is the least
bit handicapped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“If you get into difficulties press the
orange button,” she said as she left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
locked the door. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do wish that the disabled were consulted
as to where and what they needed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
was a prime example – the grab bars were virtually useless since they were too
short, the loo paper was impossible to access given it was too far back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The floor covering was slippery and with the
short grab handles getting up was difficult – so I removed a shoe which always
helps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slowly but surely I became
upright. Putting out a hand for my crutch I knocked it flying across the
room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At this point zap the lights went
off.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t find my shoe, despite being sure
I knew where it was but this search inadvertently made me move away from the
security of the toilet. Fortunately I felt the tap and hung onto it for dear
life accidently pushing it so that a jet of water shot out to soak me and make the
floor wet and more slippery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
incident made me jump back – well not jump exactly but made me shuffle further
into the room which, incidentally, was huge! Losing contact with the bog and
the basin made me feel even more vulnerable. Where was my crutch – please
behave, I have heard every crutch joke there is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Panic<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>began to grow, I could be here for a long
time, had no one not noticed<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>. . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and then the light went back on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cool cat – well, I like to think I am
- who had gone in was no more, instead a wild eyed, wet, OAP with one shoe on
effusively thanked the nurse who appeared in a flurry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Why didn’t you pull the orange alarm?” she
asked.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I would have had I been able to see it!”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“You should have moved about more, the
light wouldn’t go off then.”<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I was virtually doing a bloody tango . .
.’<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Supported by the nurse I re-entered the
waiting room to a chorus of “Three old ladies got locked in the lavatory . . .”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I pretended to be amused . . One friend upon
being told of my adventure wittily pointed out – with a schoolboy snigger -
that having a M<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">otion Sensor Light <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>really IS a joke.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US">Rereading
this I realise it doesn’t beat the time I sat on a special loo seat tor the
disabled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Settling down it suddenly took
off and with me hanging on for dear life shot across the bathroom floor as if
we were on the Cresta Run!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-62261208258142234952014-07-27T13:54:00.001+01:002014-07-27T13:54:15.733+01:00BRUSHES WITH HISTORY<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">Many of the
events of history are nearer than we think.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Take the first World War, it has always been in the background of my
life – stories of relatives who survived and those who didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d read the poems and wept over them and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Goodbye
to All <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That</i> – by Roert Graves, a
great book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I toured the cemeteries of France, my
fascination with the history made more real.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>July 1<sup>st</sup>, 1972 we found ourselves, by accident, having a
picnic on the front line of the Somme offensive but also on the very
anniversary of its start. We all shivered as history clustered around us – the
dawn start, by nightfall 20,000 of our soldiers dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘That’s only <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>56 years ago.” My eldest son had worked out. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">“And Ma, only 21
years before you were born” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him
no to be ridiculous, he wasn’t <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>it was
true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>History is old, history is ages
away, but you know, it’s not!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">Between the wars,
in 1922 my father, got talking to an old man outside a pub in Bourton on the
Water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Asked what he did, he replied he
was in the navy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Then this will
interest you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You see, my father fought
at the Battle of Trafalgar.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At first my father was cynical but then
working out the dates it became clear that it could be true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dad was born in 1900 so 95 years separated him
from the battle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The old man was, it
transpired, in his mid-nineties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
would have been born in approx. 1827<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>so
his tale was likely to be true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I
knew a man, who met a man, who was sired by a veteran of Trafalgar.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">Now for the story
of the ring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the late 50s I admired a
ring worn by my husband’s grandmother who was a very imperious woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ring was made of two large pearls, one
pink and one black. “Would you like to try it on?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would I?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“It was Marie Antoinette’s.” she announced as if possessing such an
object was routine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I too was cynical.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“How do you know it was?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In retrospect this was rather rude of me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Because when I was a very young gal, I
knew a very old woman whose mother had been lady in waiting to the Queen – it
was a present from her.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was
accompanied by a withering look of such ferocity that I vowed never to question
anything she said, ever!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I should have asked for her name but
even without I think it is true. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Phyll Burgh was born in 1877 so she was
separated from the Queen’s death by 84 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She said she was very young and the gift was from a very old lady -why
didn’t I ask how old they both had been?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If the Queen’s attendant was young did she marry and become a mother
after the execution of Marie Antionette?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If so, it is feasible. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the ring?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was I left it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sadly no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As she grew older she became very vague and no one knows what happened
to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just hope that whoever has it
knows its story. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<span lang="EN-US">If any of you
have had these brushes with history, please tell us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 120.5pt;">
<br /></div>
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Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-46131782193241040892014-05-05T13:41:00.000+01:002014-05-05T13:41:03.611+01:00The Age Related House Move<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;">It’s hard to admit
but the inevitable has happened and I have to acknowledge my age is catching up
with me – as yet I refuse to say it has totally <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">caught </i>up! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What happened to change my attitude.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We moved house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They say that the stress of moving is second
to divorce or death of a loved one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
had always laughed at this concept, what softies people are was my conclusion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>House moving for me was a regular occurrence
– this was my 30<sup>th</sup> to date – I always approached it with optimism
and excitement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A new house, a new
beginning, new friends and a chance to get rid of things and to finally sort
out the drawers, which, I promised myself every New Year I would keep tidy and
which every year were neglected and so full one had difficulty shutting them –
until a moving date was arranged.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Were we making the right choice never
entered my mind – mansion, new build or cottage the anticipation was great and
was, I thought, similar to the first day back at school or starting to write a
new novel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wrong!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This time the muddle we created doesn’t
get any better after three weeks of taking possession the removal boxes await
my attention, loads of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My theory
is that at night they have orgies and create more boxes to empty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s not as if we are dumbing down, no
way, this house is larger than move number 29 was, so sorting should be
easier.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wrong!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This house is cluttered to the roof top with
my things.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘ You own too much,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>you’ve got to get rid of some stuff . . .’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the opinion of my long suffering
daughter who is already custodian to loads of books, coffee tables, curtains
and linen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s easy to say but hard to
do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How can I possibly choose when most
of my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">stuff –</i> how I hate that word - for
what is stuff to some is treasure to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, I have some hideous
ornaments of dogs – presents from my children when young, how can I throw them
away?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have virtually every birthday,
valentine and Christmas card sent me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have hats I never wear but remind me of the day I wore them and the happiness I
encountered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do sometimes throw things
out – witness the scores of champagne bottles I once jettisoned, it was hard
for on each one I had written what we had been celebrating when we had drunk
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then there are the paintings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love them all, the walls of my homes are
normally crowded with them, each one tells me where it wants to go – I used to
hang them myself, now the arthritis in my elbows won’t let me so they stand
forlorn waiting to put up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Old age is
not for wimps my friend Felicity told me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d best not start on the clothes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Suffice to say the optimist I am always hopes
I will one day get in those that are too small for me, and the logical me says
best to keep everything that is too big incase I get larger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To compound the problem I’ve bought some new
– mainly to cheer me up.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am tired of the struggle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fed up with doing too much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fearful of the knowledge that I can no longer
do what I used to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Am I old?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too old for this moving lark.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Depression loomed large until a
friend’s mother said it was time I acknowledged I was old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unwittingly she is my savior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Old?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Me?
B******* say I as I open yet another box<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-89291220473242945372014-02-09T17:03:00.000+00:002014-02-09T17:03:12.582+00:00The Silly Things We Say<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">The Silly Things We Say<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">"I</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">t’s a small world we live
in," I said the other day to my friend Andrew. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">"What a cliché.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Can't you think of something more original to say than that?” he
growled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Poor soul, I begin to feel
sorry for him for he's reached the age when he’s beginning to show definite
signs of turning into a grumpy old man.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">‘The problem is they are clichés because they say
what is true and so are often repeated.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I responded, feeling quite grumpy myself as my position as a writer
appeared to be under attack and, in my opinion, wrongly for this really was a
case in point - I’d just discovered that a friend’s great-grandfather had had
an affair with another friend’s great-grandmother and my mother-in-law knew
them both - now is that strange or is that strange? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Mind you, these were exceptional circumstances when
only a cliché would do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However it got
me thinking about sayings in general.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And we really do use some odd ones.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lets imagine a middle aged woman who has just
discovered that her husband has run off with his secretary who is a good two
decades younger than her, far prettier and also fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A splendid rant at the unfairness of it all
is called for which makes her feel a lot better until a friend pipes up with
-<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“At least you can take comfort that <i>there’s
always someone worse off than you!</i>”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She then proceeds to illustrate this by telling her, invariably, of a
person who has just been diagnosed with some awful disease.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“I’m sorry for your friend, but I don’t care.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s <i>my</i> husband who has done a bunk,”
our middle-aged woman snaps, and rightly so. “You’ll be telling me next that
her cat is pregnant.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“How did you know?“<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It is at this point that you wouldn’t be surprised
nor would you criticise the spurned wife if she chose to clock them over the
head with a flat iron.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Here’s another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What about a girl or boy, it doesn’t matter which, who is certain they
have met the love of their lives; they are wallowing in the bliss of pure love
and passion - and then they get unceremoniously ditched.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“<i>Never mind there are plenty more fish in the sea</i>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some prat consoles them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So what on earth is the point of that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This poor soul isn’t interested in <i>fish</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the love of their lives they want and
yearn for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suppose if you were a manic
fisherman it might be of interest but who wants to kiss a guppy when it’s their
prince they long for?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">One that can cover numerous eventualities, from
death to losing your wallet, from getting the sack to finding your favourite
dish in the restaurant is “Off” from going bankrupt to getting a spot before a
big dance:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>It was meant to be . .
.something better will turn up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>Oh,
yes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who says?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I will
confess to often using that particular cliché when the purchase of a house
you’ve set your heart on falls through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And in that case, I’ve discovered, it’s often true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve lost count, in my peripatetic live, of
the number of times a sale has collapsed and we’ve ended up with a far nicer
home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A leopard never changes his spots</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How daft is that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just think about it for a minute, why on
earth would a leopard want to change his spots? I’m sure they are perfectly
happy the way they are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And who knows,
if they did change their spots maybe their mums wouldn’t recognise them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And in any case, how would they go about
it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the jungle or wherever leopards
live.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">And why is it just leopards?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s so special about them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about Zebras changing their stripes, or
ladybirds, and how about Gloucester Old Spot?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why persecute the leopards?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A stitch in time saves nine. </span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who counted?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That’s plain silly, it could be more but then on the other hand it might
be less.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It never rains but it pours. </span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh no it doesn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s a shower?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hardly a downpour is it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps you could say that in all honesty in
the tropics but not here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Every cloud has a silver lining.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">No it doesn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We’ve all seen clouds there ain’t no silver there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Life is what you make it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">No it isn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Life happens - if you could control it then we’d all be whatever we
wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Personally I would be a
brunette, beautiful slim, rich and with a seductive low laugh, not the snort I
ended up with.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The grass is always greener.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">That is just not true. I can look out of my window
and prove to you that is a lie.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">There are a couple of new ones I’ve noticed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>What goes around comes around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>Now what exactly does that mean?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If some kind soul would explain it to
me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the other is <i>I’ll give it 110%
don’t</i> trust whoever promises you that, don’t you know it doesn’t exist!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This article first appeared in the CGA magazine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-72278920640130437672014-01-12T12:01:00.000+00:002014-01-12T12:01:10.976+00:00
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">This essay was written when we
lived in France and first appeared in the CGA magazine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> <b> The English Dinner Party.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">S</span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">ince the French are
passionately knowledgeable about food, a foreigner shopping in France should
not be surprised when she is almost overwhelmed by the conflicting advice given
her. One person firmly recommends the butcher
by the railway station, another assures you he is only sound on pork, far
better to patronise the one by the church for beef. Get your vegetables at one stall and someone
will tell you they are full of slugs and pesticides. And as to cheese - best
not to get involved, it could turn nasty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> The French, as we know, and with reason, regard other
nations</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> food as a poor substitute for
their own. But they reserve their
greatest opprobrium for English food.
Those English who live in France ( I say English advisedly since the
Scots can do no wrong in French eyes, especially since that wretched film </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Braveheart</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">) have to become
immune to the taunts they receive if they are to survive.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Imagine the stress then of inviting them to dine. Whether
to serve English or French must be decided, the balance ensured, the right
wines selected. We did serve an Indian curry
once but I</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d rather draw a veil over that
incident. Perhaps one should stick to
what one knows we decide and, hopefully disprove their preconceived ideas of
English food.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> So it was, that the momentous decision to serve steak and
kidney pie was made. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">We should check
that they like kidneys,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I advised.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Don</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t be silly. It</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s well known that the French adore offal!</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Billy airily dismissed my concerns.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> We were safe with smoked salmon, not
only is it universally admired but of course it would be <i>Scottish</i>. We
would have roast potatoes - sound ground there, I</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">ve yet to see a French tattie so cooked;
dauphinois, boiled, chipped, sautéed but never roasted. We had some wonderful Hungarian peaches
bottled in liqueur. We</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d serve that, and pretend they were English, and we</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d have the cheese at the end of the meal - English
style, not French. Marvelous.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I admit I was nervous as Antionette
arrived, her gorgeous, animated, face hidden behind a huge potted plant. Her husband followed carrying wine. I read in a book that it was considered rude
to take wine when dining out in France.
However, happily, we have noticed our guests always do; maybe they are afraid
we don</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t understand wine, that we are
all football </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">ooligans and drink only to get
drunk. That</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s a laugh in this house where Billy has made a
religion out of wine, the cellar is his own personal chapel where he sits in
deep contemplation counting his bottles -
mind you he</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s not averse to
getting drunk either.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> In the half-hour I</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d allotted for drinks and general chat all was going
well. I popped the pie in the oven, five
minutes to the off I put on the vegetables.
About eight o</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">clock I noticed our
new Cairn puppy was missing - the gate had been left open.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The baby has got
out!</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I wailed - I</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d forgotten the word for puppy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Everyone rushed into the garden. (I
remembered to turn off one oven and the veg.)
Not a sign of her. Billy took off
in the car, daughter</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s boyfriend armed
with a torch began the steep climb up the hill.
Antionette was suggesting we call the police. I know the French like dogs but that seemed a
bit extreme until we realised she thought my three year old grandchild had gone
missing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">No, it</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s the dog.
Anita wouldn</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t be nearly so
hysterical if it were the child,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> my ex-husband,
Peter advised. I gave him a daggers
look. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Everyone settled back when the
call came the puppy had been sighted at the bottom of the village. I put the pie and veg back on. No one appeared. I turned them off. I turned them on, then off, as I flapped back
and forth. Billy and Patrick appeared
triumphantly with the dog, hot and exhausted, three quarters of an hour later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Dinner</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s ready!</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">”</span><i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span></i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I called just as the cat
jumped up and began to consume a plate of smoked salmon. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Don</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t worry, it</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s Peter</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I gaily told them,
quickly reseating everyone but getting my own back for the remark about my
grandchild. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Time to serve the pie. Poor pie.
It had been in and out of the oven so many times that it was not sure
where it was - I could see exactly where.
It was burnt round the edges and collapsed in the middle. The vegetables by now were reminiscent of the
way my mother used to serve them - pale and soggy. With all the turning on and off I had forgotten the oven with the potatoes
which emerged like lumps of charcoal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">How delicious it
all looks,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> declared dear
Antionette. ‘What is it?</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">An English
speciality, `The steak and kidney pie.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> She didn</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t need to say anything, her expressive face did the
talking for her. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I am desolated but the kidneys - I can never eat,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> she said with
a Gallic wave of the hands.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">So, Mr Expert, the
French eat everything do they?</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I whispered
through clenched teeth to Billy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Not my fault. They usually do. How was I to know we</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d have the only French woman . . .!</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> He was
speaking in a sort of nonchalant, Tiggerish, sort of way. </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">She can always pick
them out.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">‘</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Really, it</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s no problem . . .</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> Antionette called out as she slid the
contents of her plate onto that of her husband like a greasy spoon waitress -
and I</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">d used the Wedgwood too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> My jaws ached from smiling and snarling
at the same time, have you ever tried it?
Billy escaped a further ear wigging as Antionette, game to the end,
speared a roast potato which, solid as it was. shot through the air and knocked
a burning candle flying - it could have been worse, only two napkins went up in
flames. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: -4.5pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -36.0pt;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I finally began to eat, and found the
pie was tepid. Could anything worse
happen? Of course it could. I looked across at my dear ex-husband and
realised he was verging on the paralytic.
He had evidently taken the opportunity, during the great puppy hunt, of
helping himself to a couple more gins and, looking at the state of him, rather
large ones they must have been too. He
is a linguist, he speaks fourteen languages, he has a degree in French and is
fluent - but not this night, oh dear me no!
He couldn</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t string two words
together. Whereupon, Antionette,
thinking he understood nothing, began to speak to him in Franglais which only
confused him further. Fortunately or
not, it depends how you look at it, at this point he went to sleep. Antionette thought it was adorable, </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">“</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The English Milord's are so eccentric,</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">”</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> she assured me.
I love that woman.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> The pudding arrived. It wasn</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">t my fault this
time. We decided it was a little bland
and needed some Kirsch. It was
Antionette who tipped most of the bottle in them making them inedible.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> The cheese, French, was an enormous
success!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> It was only as they left - very
early, they had to go to Marseilles the next day with an early start - I tend
to believe them - I realised I had completely forgotten to offer them coffee.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> By now I was exhausted. Both husbands and the puppy were asleep as I
sat depressed at what a failure I had been in my attempts to promote the food
of my native country.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"> I pottered about, tidying up,
turning off the lights, and then, barefooted stepped into one of the puppy</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">’</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">s accidental turds!
Given the evening it was, of course, the perfect end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-20101854867270545042013-10-26T16:16:00.000+01:002013-12-17T21:14:00.921+00:00Aged StepsI sometimes think that as one gets older booby traps are set to try, test or annoy us. Take your pick.<br />
For example I have to go to see my retinal surgeon regularly - I know, it sounds scary, but it isn’t. Friends invariably become squeamish when I mention eye surgery to them; but honestly, it doesn’t hurt, going to the dentist is far worse.<br />
My surgeon is like a magician when it comes to restoring sight - first you can‘t see then you can! Policemen looking younger every year is one thing but it’s something else when your consultant looks as if he’s just been allowed to wear long trousers for the first time.<br />
Going to his consulting rooms is, I imagine, similar to a social meeting of the mafia - his patients tend to go in for rather large dark sun glasses. There is also a tendency to shuffle given that deteriorating sight is often inflicted on the, shall we say, more mature members of society. Hence there is a plethora of walking sticks and various walking aids.<br />
The wait in the car park, on one visit, was somewhat prolonged as, with bated breath, we watched two very aged patients negotiate the steps up to the front door. Both had severe mobility problems plus the aforementioned sun glasses. Now these steps are steep. And when I say steep I mean it, a mini north face of the Eiger steep. Going up is fretful, coming down is, shall we say, stimulating and must be agony to observers, “Will she? Won’t she - get to the bottom unscathed?” they must ask themselves.<br />
Often, in such waiting rooms, people sit and ignore each other - them there black specs would make it easier to do. But I’ve found that those with bad eyesight are often sociable folks - it’s the same at the eye hospital. Perhaps having restricted vision reduces inhibitions, easier when you can’t really see who you’re talking to, so can make fewer judgements about them. <br />
This time we got going quickly, helped by a very jolly and friendly woman who was not a patient, we began to chat and chat and then some more. Having dealt with various hot news topics - the usual ones, crime, the youth of today, drugs, reality television, and our collective agreement on our feelings for the government and especially NICE, we inevitably got on to the subject of THE steps.<br />
Everyone was in accord that going down was a dodgy exercise especially for the partially sighted (I should point out that due to the Magician’s skills I am now an ex member of this band - Yippee!)<br />
‘My dentist is on the first floor,’ a quiet creature ventured.<br />
‘That’s nothing compared to my dentist’s. Two flights and very.’ A lady robustly informed us - having watched her somewhat precarious arrival I clucked in sympathy and then everyone muttered in agreement. I admired her, she was obviously one of those no nonsense women who are the backbone of the shires and who are handy to know in wartime.<br />
‘It’s a mystery to me why my physiotherapist’s treatment room is in the basement. To make matters worse the steps are covered in moss,’ an elderly gentleman added his pennyworth. This was becoming quite competitive, I thought.<br />
‘Why are lawyers’ rooms always on the top floor of Georgian buildings with no lifts?’ The speaker was right. Nearly everyone had a story of the legal profession skulking in the attics. One man swore that he needed oxygen when he got to the top and was convinced that was where he would one day croak it. I forbore to ask if this lawyer was the one who held THE will, it seemed a bit tasteless.<br />
Why was it? We puzzled. The indomitable lady put her finger on it.<br />
The problem lay, she said, with the city we were in, a beautiful, perfect, Georgian gem - Historic Buildings wallahs would stamp on any change to steps. ‘So, the blind and lame, just have to put up with it,’ she barked, and I doubt anyone would argue with her - about anything, come to that.<br />
I was itching to get in with my example. ‘I know a chiropodist and his staircase is vertiginous. You see these poor people with poorly feet, needing crampons to get to him.’<br />
Everyone congratulated me on my fine illustration. I was excited now. I reckoned I could top that. ‘I attend the local Parkinson’s Association meetings and guess where they are held, on the FIRST floor.’<br />
Gasps of astonishment went up. I reckon I had won the great steps debate with two fine examples.<br />
After seeing the magician and receiving a good report on the state of my retina - Yippee again! I set off down the steps and, guess what, I tripped. And it crossed my mind, as I hung onto the hand-rail for dear life, Georgian city or not, what about ’ealth and Safety?Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-75396108592583317822013-09-01T23:26:00.000+01:002013-09-19T21:51:44.776+01:00Should Animals Carry a Health Warning?<br>
Experts tell us that the owning of a pet is a <i>good </i>thing. It’s beneficial for one’s health both physical and mental. Pets help the elderly fight the scourge of loneliness. They tell us stroking your cat or dog can calm you, even lower your blood pressure. And a recent report goes as far as saying that the ownership of one can subtract a good six months from your biological age.<br>
Splendid.<br>
No doubt all this is so. However, there is, I've discovered, from personal experience, a reverse side. Animals can actually damage your health and they most certainly can damage you financially - and this is excluding vet’s bills. And I'm not talking about the simple - tripping over them in the dark - accidents. Oh dear me no.<br>
It started years ago with Alan who came to stay with his dinner jacket and ticket for a Cambridge May Ball. He did not know he was allergic to cats. But when our kitten climbed under his duvet he discovered he was and the incident triggered his first ever asthma attack - a particularly bad one. Once the ambulance was called we were all late and he missed the ball. We could not find a buyer for his ticket and Moss Bros weren’t interested that he’d never worn their suit. I was unaware that this was the beginning of pet catastrophes.<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2013/09/should-animals-carry-health-warning.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-32494897141856428122013-04-17T13:10:00.005+01:002013-10-13T15:17:12.094+01:00The Story Behind The Visitor<br>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Nearly every writer I know has a theme or themes
which they return to time and time again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Mine are consistent and have their roots in my own life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">First is my dislike of the class system
which pervades this country. We are constantly being told that it no longer
exists, that we live in an egalitarian society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I beg to differ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are
changes, of course, and it might not be as rigid as it was in my youth, but
instead of disappearing, like an amoeba it <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>grows and other strata evolve to encompass our
altering society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add now an elite and
an underclass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> This stems from my experiences of life as a working class girl who
married into the aristocracy and I still bear the scars. <o:p></o:p></span><br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2013/04/the-story-behind-visitor.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-7517429927271116302013-01-05T21:29:00.000+00:002013-10-13T15:17:20.145+01:00The Story Behind BREEDERS - <br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRZK2lhTk8QyRWkOTmiOja8J9W9dbcoSt00kab7x_XNv4SaBUedNJ7_9zhsMi2x4OeqUo2Vbo1zShGhMT4VBKOEGdUFxXA6wZvWrgOcXvU2VZwr1IuXkHBzzqUAOv6gzEykklfcFgxyGRY/s1600/400_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRZK2lhTk8QyRWkOTmiOja8J9W9dbcoSt00kab7x_XNv4SaBUedNJ7_9zhsMi2x4OeqUo2Vbo1zShGhMT4VBKOEGdUFxXA6wZvWrgOcXvU2VZwr1IuXkHBzzqUAOv6gzEykklfcFgxyGRY/s320/400_.jpg" width="202"></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Breeders is one of my favourite books.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dogs are a big part in the story and my
passion <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>are my dogs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided that instead of three main characters
I would write <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>three couples falling in
love - a young pair with the joy of first love; a couple who are both emerging
from the debris of failed marriages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
an elderly couple who find each other. Three couple whose love is different but
yet the same <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">One of the nicest things about being a writer is
that if someone has been unkind or rude to you, or who simply annoys you then
the fury, anger or mild irritation with them can be helped <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>by a simple dose of revenge - you can put them
in a book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, if not careful,
you can be sued so it’s best to take the precaution of renaming them and making
it so there mother’s don’t recognise them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Doesn’t this negate the revenge?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No, it doesn’t since THEY know who you are writing about.</span><br>
</div><a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2013/01/the-story-behind-breeders.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-8417786294281296102012-06-03T19:22:00.003+01:002013-10-13T15:17:26.717+01:00Overtures Story<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicaURxRwKHe67_tVP-XSI3YMrU8BUM1K06jqWKF1qWT030mnLdtx9jwYAraP5bVzBQv6eqOoar_uVcNw_hn7WZT1IdwI8WdEJ9CQAAiF9s_647bqBk4xILH_ZjTu8slXRbFh0sbi5mBDM4/s1600/400_overtures.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicaURxRwKHe67_tVP-XSI3YMrU8BUM1K06jqWKF1qWT030mnLdtx9jwYAraP5bVzBQv6eqOoar_uVcNw_hn7WZT1IdwI8WdEJ9CQAAiF9s_647bqBk4xILH_ZjTu8slXRbFh0sbi5mBDM4/s320/400_overtures.jpg" width="202"></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">I wanted to write a novel about sibling rivalry,
about favouritism, about ambition, about betrayal - but where to set it,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>my agent took me to the opera at Covent
Garden when she discovered I had never been - although as a child I was taken
every year to a Gilbert and Sullivan which I hated!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had always loved opera singers, though I
have to confess that it was the arias I liked and not the recitative!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that was a magical evening so opera it
would be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had for a
time, in the sixties, worked for an agent in the pop music industry. So pop
would be included and Overtures began.</span><br>
</div><a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2012/06/overtures-story.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-85729438704821199412012-01-23T10:50:00.002+00:002013-10-13T15:17:34.135+01:00The Story Behing Hector's Hobbies.<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbV8ruIcYKvxuW6QD2nHK0OPmJaM8nWrZMB-FlBUjZlrJH0o5BKyT30K8d119PL_hkRX15wsgbaDQrwI7CS40Bi7TYCqwq4ejlfu5Hjk6uMgIjrS_l4YIpg1pUo3GBKX_coTQ_9MmfiruK/s1600/400_hectors_hobbies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbV8ruIcYKvxuW6QD2nHK0OPmJaM8nWrZMB-FlBUjZlrJH0o5BKyT30K8d119PL_hkRX15wsgbaDQrwI7CS40Bi7TYCqwq4ejlfu5Hjk6uMgIjrS_l4YIpg1pUo3GBKX_coTQ_9MmfiruK/s320/400_hectors_hobbies.jpg" width="240"></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Hector is the second book in the series suggested by
Carmen Callil when I was at Chatto and Windus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">I doubt there is an author who does not dream of
their book becoming a film or adapted for TV.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Such dreams coming true are as rare as hens’ teeth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem sets in when you get a call that
someone wants to buy an optioned on your book - an option is one thing, it
coming to fruition is another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When this
happens, my advice is always the same - bank the money and forget about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2012/01/story-behing-hectors-hobbies.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-45273710514609865662012-01-13T11:55:00.003+00:002013-10-13T15:17:41.262+01:00The Story of Molly's Flashings<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAuRlCZYkzC32WfGk3lfKqA_G4zCvNjYw6Vr4tIuBA5rA_CgSUHSy-eb54Cp48Hv7SzvvXmuAO_u606C3UGIRcL-LuTozBXft5uiJEz-M8klH0Q9pOKBJ7pwfFSwJMf4CPEt8Trf2kn6MR/s1600/400_mollys_flashings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAuRlCZYkzC32WfGk3lfKqA_G4zCvNjYw6Vr4tIuBA5rA_CgSUHSy-eb54Cp48Hv7SzvvXmuAO_u606C3UGIRcL-LuTozBXft5uiJEz-M8klH0Q9pOKBJ7pwfFSwJMf4CPEt8Trf2kn6MR/s320/400_mollys_flashings.jpg" width="240"></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">In 1991 Molly’s Flashings was published by Chatto
and Windus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was lucky, far luckier
than I had the sense to realise, to be involved with such a prestigious
publisher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>MD was Carmen Callil who, rightly, was
regarded as one of the most brilliant and innovative publishers in London.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the founders of Virago, when I met her
she was revitalising Chatto and bringing it into the 20th century - it was not
an easy task since there was resistance to her plans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This great literary house was resting on its
laurels and while it was all very well to be regarded as the most esteemed house
it did not help pay the bills!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2012/01/story-of-mollys-flashings.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-71307257581559159122011-12-31T14:17:00.000+00:002013-10-13T15:17:51.011+01:00Clare’s War - Story<br>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Clare’s War</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> is the third novel to go on Kindle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">There are times when
publishers are looking for a novel on a specific subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They then they ask one of their writers if
they would consider doing so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have
written several at their suggestion - Advances, Molly’s Flashings, Hector’s
Hobbies, the trilogy The Cresswell Inheritance and Clare’s War were all
suggested to me in one way or another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There have been others which, on reflection, I
decided I could not do - either I did not like the subject or was not
interested in it or I felt it was one which was beyond my capabilities or
knowledge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was never any pressure
but I always felt it was courteous to think about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I was asked if I would consider working
on a novel set in France during the Second World War, particularly involving
the Resistance. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I needed to read a lot around
the subject since most of what we know about France during that period is from
the English standpoint and, it has to be admitted, is not always complimentary
to the French.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a fascinating
subject to research.</span><br>
</div><a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2011/12/clares-war-story.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-70884640595649531352011-12-28T17:43:00.001+00:002013-10-13T15:18:02.276+01:00Lottery's Story<br>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQrNz1yp3MdOrJ2V38qfbyvSjk1cHk8-ejFGanpZcWAINbjrKbPx7hh4vAFoaKb6LPT3CuQE-sprYqIUv-g2fVZtKUUUoQKda6bGaYbPT0GTqgr7LhyPZqiHBTy65kjBR93SDylcbaKQD/s1600/400_lottery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdQrNz1yp3MdOrJ2V38qfbyvSjk1cHk8-ejFGanpZcWAINbjrKbPx7hh4vAFoaKb6LPT3CuQE-sprYqIUv-g2fVZtKUUUoQKda6bGaYbPT0GTqgr7LhyPZqiHBTy65kjBR93SDylcbaKQD/s320/400_lottery.jpg" width="202"></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>This book was first published in 1995,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>it came about purely by chance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I often write on the subject of money and the
affect it can have on an individual or on their friends and family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know from experience that having great
wealth does not always make people happy - even though I find that puzzling for
I’m sure I would be happy!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It also
raised another interesting point for me, that is, why do some people see a story
that needs to be told and yet the next person does not.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One evening,
watching TV, there was a news cast about a woman who had won a small fortune on
the football pools.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She looked to be
early sixties, and as if she had worked hard all her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A very mumsy sort of woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surrounded by her family they were hugging
her and saying what a great mother she was and it couldn’t have happened to a
better peron . . . the usual, somewhat banal expressions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then I noticed at the back was a young
man with a steely expression and a chill ran down my spine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s all lovely,” I said to Bill, “What
about that blog at the back. I don’t like the look of him, I wonder what comes
next?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a book in this.”</span></span><br>
</div><a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2011/12/lotterys-story.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-74275074410327373792011-12-12T11:29:00.000+00:002013-09-19T22:03:38.179+01:00KINDLE and ME<br>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Well, I’ve done it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve taken that step into the unknown!.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m part of the brave new future from which
there’s no turning back. I’ve put a book on Kindle. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So what, everyone is doing it, what’s the fuss?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can hear you say. I am aware of that, I’ve
friends galore who have been up and running for months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t expect the reaction I had, it took
me by surprise how emotional I felt at sending the book into the ether. It was
different and it was exciting and, in a strange way, it was moving. <o:p></o:p></span><br>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> My backlist is long and choosing which novel to be first was difficult. Eventually
I chose <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Love the Bright Foreigner. </i>It
was the first book I wrote though it was the second one that was published. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Subsequently it has a special meaning to me
and, since it had been out of print for some time, it would be nice to give it
a second chance.</span><br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2011/12/kindle-and-me.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-47374994479878496082011-08-17T21:15:00.003+01:002013-09-19T22:04:18.006+01:00CATCH UP<span style="font-family: Calibri;">My apologies for being away for so long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are several reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first was that I felt I had nothing more
to say about writing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are so many
blogs around that I knew I would not be missed and I cannot see the point of
just writing for writings sake or to fill up a blog - and we all know blogs
like that!<o:p></o:p></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So what have I been up to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I finished my new novel and I am in the process, a bit slow, to edit
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My agent suggested odd changes and
tweeks here and there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I doubt I’ll ever
learn for when I sent it off I KNEW there were weak areas but was too idle to
do anything about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course my agent
picked up on the self-same parts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Inner voice,
as I’ve said before, is the best tool we have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Don’t be like me, listen!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br>
</div><a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2011/08/caatch-up.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-24464894716348802242011-03-31T19:07:00.000+01:002013-09-19T22:04:41.238+01:00Janice HortonMy blog has been seriously neglected of late and I apologise but life has a habit of interfering with the best laid plans. However, my friend, Janice Horton has jogged me into writing of my interview with her. <br>
Janice lives in Scotland and writes humorous contemporary women's novels which are inspired by the beauty of the heather-filled glens around her country cottage. When she’s not writing novels she writes lifestyle articles and has had work published in national magazines and regional newspapers. She’s also been involved in BBC Scotland's ‘Write Here Write Now’ project.<br>
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Have you always wanted to write?<br>
Janice: I’ve had romantic notions about being a writer since I was a little girl. Enid Blyton was a favourite inspiration in the early days. I had a garden shed with ‘SS’ on the door in which I sat writing my own ‘Secret Seven’ books starring me, of course, and my brothers and friends. A few years later, I was still sitting in the shed, only writing pony stories inspired by Ruby Ferguson’s ‘Jill Books’. <br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2011/03/janice-horton.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-15167894356857118552010-08-01T11:17:00.000+01:002013-09-19T22:05:22.796+01:00LOOKING BACKRecently, on the RNA forum, Sarah asked if we look back at our books did we feel proud or surprised that it was published? (I must say Sarah does ask interesting questions which always get me thinking.) The answers have been surprising since most people said they were proud of their first book.<br>
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Many years ago I heard an author – can’t remember who – say that authors were invariably embarrassed by their first novel. At the time I thought it was a silly comment for how could anyone be ashamed of a book which they had written and someone had published? Now I understand for I agree with that unknown writer.<br>
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Of course a lot depends on whether or not it was your first novel. I was once told that often it’s the second. third or even fourth one you’ve written that gets published. There’s a logic to it for you learn so much in the writing of a novel that inevitably what follows is better.<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2010/08/looking-back.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-82318254172068379122010-07-11T15:05:00.002+01:002013-09-19T22:05:46.621+01:00READERSHIPJackie asked - did I know who my readership is? Were they constantly changing or did they remain loyal? Did I think of my readers when writing someone else asked.
I do know some of my readership, and they are wonderfully loyal and they write to me and some I like to think of as friends. However when writing I don’t think of them, I can’t. The writing takes over and becomes the be all and end all. If I managed to squeeze a thought of who I was writing for in, I’m sure it would inhibit me, hold me back. I’d be worried if they were enjoying it, would they understand what I was doing, would they like it? So, best not to go there.
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<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2010/07/readership.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-387058277012090122010-06-27T12:45:00.000+01:002013-09-19T22:06:05.511+01:00HOW FAR SHOULD WE GO?Having lived a very varied life, I often delve into my past, for my novels, and use incidents, sometimes embellished, sometimes understated usually disguised, but my life all the same. There are writers who say they never use experiences from their own lives in their writing. This is often said as if to imply that autobiographical use is in some way inferior since it is often accompanied with the caveat “I rely entirely on my imagination . . .” To which I answer, don’t we all?
Using ones own experiences occurs all the time; you have decided that your heroine falls in love, or gets ditched, has a baby, is ill, or is betrayed. You need to describe how she feels, sometimes you imagine it but how often are you tapping into your own memories of what it was like? What’s that but autobiographical?
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<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2010/06/how-far-should-we-go.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-18132562468333283762010-06-20T10:30:00.002+01:002013-09-19T22:08:12.937+01:00HOW IT IS.There is despondency in the air again. I began to wonder how best to cheer everyone up. Words of comfort are all very well but how much good they do I’m not sure. Specifics, I decided were what is needed. So, I asked a group of writers to give me some facts to share with my wounded writers smarting from criticism and rejection and, hopefully, make them feel better.
The writers who responded were a good mix of mainstream, category, and e-publishing, which, I thought was better than having them all from one form of publishing.
Since there had been a nasty spate of rejections which always knocks the confidence and makes some think of giving it all up, the first questions I asked was:
<b>How long did it take for you to get published?</b><br>
The answers were interesting. Adding them all together and then dividing I got a rough average.
Short stories took, on average, 4 months to be accepted.
While novels take, on average, 4 years.
But out of those numbers came some surprises. If you write category novels then the average became 9 years! And the strangest fact of all to emerge was that out of all those who responded there were two writers, one tried for 10 years before getting her 6th novel taken, and the other wrote for 17 years before her 8th book was accepted. Now that is perseverance and courage in abundance. But, and here is the interesting fact – they are the two most successful of those who answered. There’s a moral in there somewhere. And myself? I was rejected for four years.<br>
<a href="http://www.anitaburgh.com/2010/06/how-it-is.html#more">Read more »</a>Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-51848878854914530122010-06-06T17:36:00.002+01:002010-06-06T17:46:47.900+01:00PITFALLS 3 - PreferencesWe all have preferences and editors are no exception, though there are times when what they prefer is not necessarily what you want. I have to say that I have never met a fat editor, publicity manager - here is much glamour in the world of publishing. Hence when I once wrote a heroine who was a size 14.
“Does she have to be so gross?” my size 0 editor asked.
We also have to remember that they live and work in London for the most part; they move in a rarefied world with attitudes and believes far removed from those of middle England. Hence they will often query a position or attitude you have given a character.
One of my heroines was somewhat put out and said as much, in no uncertain tones, upon finding her husband in flagrante with a male servant.
“You will offend so many people with such homophobia,” the same editor said.
I pointed out that my story was set in the 30s when homosexuality was a criminal offense. There was more though, I said that many women in middle England today would be similarly upset. Homophobia had nothing to do with it.
<strong><strong>Political correctness </strong></strong>intrudes all the time. colour, class, sexual orientation are all pitfalls waiting to happen. Be warned!
<strong>Words.</strong> I was once faced with the difficulty of having a publisher who loathed, abhorred abd banned the word <em><em>that</em></em>. I don’t know why she hated that poor little word but she did. Cutting back on <em><em>that</em></em> is difficult, I know! Mind you I did have sympathy with her we all have words we dislike. Mine is muse. It gives me the abdabs – but I had one copy editor who liberally sprinkled muse, muses and mussed all over my copy.
<strong><strong>Adverbs.</strong></strong> There you have another one that can cause problems.
Of course there are unnecessary ones. “I hate you, I wish you were dead!” she shouted angrily. But what is wrong with she sang happily (which I had queried once) because songs and singing vary, so she could be happy or mournful. “Justified!” I declared.
You’ll find editors who don’t mind and editors who do, it’s the luck of the draw. And what about poor little adjectives, they get a lot of blue pencilitis too. I like adjectives. Sometimes I wonder what they want us to write. If we were all minimalist in our writing how boring that would be.Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-42940821459479655602010-05-30T12:05:00.003+01:002010-05-30T12:14:14.917+01:00PITFALLS 2 - Characters.Pitfalls 2.
Habits. Don’t worry, nothing personal, I mean your character’s habits not yours!
One of the problems with characterisation is the need to make them do several things.
1. We require them to be memorable.
So what do we do to make them stand out when we have a big cast of other characters? We give them foibles, characteristics. For example, a tic – say they sniff when annoyed, or have a particular laugh, or brush their hair back, or walk in a strange way or the use of language which they prefer, so we all know it’s them. So, what’s the problem? Instead of helping, used too often, it becomes an irritant. Oh, not again, the reader begins to say to themselves.
2. We need to impart as much information for the reader as possible. A. We want to know what they are thinking. B. We have to fill in the past – the famous back story.
A. Internalisation. How to do it without it being too artificial? One of the most common is to have them looking in the mirror and that gets then having a burst of thinking. And there’s taking a bath – what is more natural? I bet you do it, soaking in the water you start to think.
Dangers are lurking though, be warned. With the mirror if they keep looking in them then they appear vain and self-obsessed. And with the bath, some of you may remember that my editor got very worried that my character had a personal hygiene problem since she had to do a lot of thinking and so she had too many baths!
Solution? Vary it. When you are having a thinking session yourself note down what you are doing.
Walking into town, or washing up or simply sitting in a chair looking into space. So many different ways, and yet we work ourselves into such a state about it. We think all the time and yet, when we write it, it can appear to be so artificial, strange.
B. The back story. Your characters are not just suddenly there - they were born they had a life before you put them into your story. As with us the past has moulded them. Their past might be a solution to any behaviour that they show which needs some explanation. The need to know is important, it makes for a more rounded characterisation.
However, again danger can lurk - do make sure that the back story isn’t more interesting than the part of their lives which you have chosen to cover.
Of course when you write a series or a trilogy the back story can be critical. Although you will be asked by your publishers to write each book as a ‘stand alone’ you will still need to put in what happened. I warn you, it’s worse than writing a synopsis. You are attempting to incorporate what has happened in a full length book to as few pages as possible.
Why as few? Because you can’t put it all in or the book will be too big. And since a lot of your readers will have read the earlier books you risk boring them. The danger therefore is putting too much back-story in and swamping the book you are writing.
And lastly, a plea. When writing people avoid clichés. Too often I read of red heads with emerald green eyes who are feisty. Of women who lack imperfections. Of fat jolly types, of thin mean types. Think it through, turn things on their head. Why not a thin person who is the life and soul of a party? And make the fat one a depressive. It would make for more interesting reading.Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4931174431442299454.post-46113267257720531032010-05-23T10:59:00.002+01:002010-05-23T11:03:24.847+01:00PITFALLS 1. AgeSarah Callejo on her new blog – worth a visit, by the way – asked what age were our heroines. I left a comment that I felt they were whatever fitted the story and I said I’d one heroine who fell in love in her 60s. But thinking it over afterwards I realised that I hadn’t really thought it through. That it’s more complicated than that, for nothing in writing is ever simple, is it?
The first problem which struck me was that the genre matters. That heroine of mine would not be realistic in a chic lit novel, would she?
The age of the readership quickly followed. The middle aged might accept her and find nothing untoward. But what about the young reading of such a woman? I can imagine the shock, horror, even disgust. Too often I’ve heard their reaction to the idea of “wrinklies” having sex!
A friend of mine writes wonderful books with older women in them. Since they are very funny I’d high hopes that she’d find a home for them, but there appears to be a resistance from editors. But how sad that it was the humour I felt would help them, not that they were tales of how older women felt – doesn’t that say a lot?
The editors, it seems to me, are nervous of approving them. They can come, it seems to me, in two varieties, both age related. The older editor lies about her age for she lives in fear of being thought over the hill, is she likely to welcome an older heroine, NO, it would damage her street cred. The other type of editor is so young she looks as if she’s just left school and so young that she thinks that anyone over the age of twenty-five might just as well be dead. So, do keep in mind that you might meet hurdles to your plans.
So how was it that my heroine of 60, in love, got away with it, for no one objected and that included my editor. I wonder if it wasn’t because we had followed her from childhood and after various romantic ups and downs, we wanted her to be happy. Had I begun with her at that age I wonder what the reaction would have been.
However, I do believe you have to be happy with the age you choose to write about. I’ve read m/s from women who have forgotten what it was like to be a teenager or in their twenties. Instead they use the language of their own youth not that of today. Also they give the women in their novel their values, their moral code. They have forgotten that the world has moved on and language and attitudes with it. They would be careful not to do it if they were writing an historical novel, but let’s face it the gulf between someone in their late 50s and a 20 year old, verges on the historical.
How you live your own life too can impact on who and how you write the young. I begin to think that to be a writer one of the first essentials is to have an open and enquiring mind, one that is not set in the aspic of the past but is excited by the present and the future.
These pitfalls are numerous, I think I might return to them next week.
And Debbie I'm sorry you are unwell and I hope you soon get back to writing.Anita Burghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15128652914788161269noreply@blogger.com4