Last night I got out of bed and padded into the tiny room we call the library...

I went into the box room (grandly titled 'The Library' due to it's being floor to ceiling shelved and filled with books) because one of my author friends(?) heroes(?) crushes (?) all of those(?) @AndyStantonTM had asked a question about grammar in the George Orwell novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, and I knew I had a copy and could check.

I checked and then of course I lay in bed and read a little, and found myself thinking of the recent riots (which I have trouble sorting in my mind, are people rioting for *more* state involvement in their lives?) when I read this...

Ignorance is Strength

Throughout recorded time, and probably since the end of the Neolithic Age, there have been three kinds of people in the world, the High, the Middle, and the Low. They have been subdivided in many ways, they have borne countless different names, and their relative numbers, as well as their attitude towards one another, have varied from age to age: but the essential structure of society has never altered. Even after enormous upheavals and seemingly irrevocable changes, the same pattern has always reasserted itself, just as a gyroscope will always return to equilibrium, however far it is pushed one way or the other --
.

'Julia, are you awake?' said Winston.

'Yes, my love, I'm listening. Go on. It's marvellous.'

He continued reading:



. The aims of these three groups are entirely irreconcilable. The aim of the High is to remain where they are. The aim of the Middle is to change places with the High. The aim of the Low, when they have an aim -- for it is an abiding characteristic of the Low that they are too much crushed by drudgery to be more than intermittently conscious of anything outside their daily lives -- is to abolish all distinctions and create a society in which all men shall be equal. Thus throughout history a struggle which is the same in its main outlines recurs over and over again. For long periods the High seem to be securely in power, but sooner or later there always comes a moment when they lose either their belief in themselves or their capacity to govern efficiently, or both. They are then overthrown by the Middle, who enlist the Low on their side by pretending to them that they are fighting for liberty and justice. As soon as they have reached their objective, the Middle thrust the Low back into their old position of servitude, and themselves become the High. Presently a new Middle group splits off from one of the other groups, or from both of them, and the struggle begins over again. Of the three groups, only the Low are never even temporarily successful in achieving their aims. It would be an exaggeration to say that throughout history there has been no progress of a material kind. Even today, in a period of decline, the average human being is physically better off than he was a few centuries ago. But no advance in wealth, no softening of manners, no reform or revolution has ever brought human equality a millimetre nearer. From the point of view of the Low, no historic change has ever meant much more than a change in the name of their masters.


I went to bed sad, I'm still sad. Sorry folks, what sort of crappy blog post is this! I'd ask for your money back if I were you.

If you want to read more, the entire novel is online here for free

Perils of the older child and Sleep Overs

I wrote some time ago now about being Nemo's Dad and the protective neurotic you become when you have a child. How it's a fine line between protection and stifling a child, and how hard it can be to find a balance.

Now my DD is 11 years old. She walks to school alone, she goes to call for friends alone, she goes to the shops alone. She also still does a lot of things with us as a family. She has yet to catch a bus or a train alone for example.

When I was 11 I did all these things too. And also, now she is older, she has friends where we don't know the parents. Not don't know them very well, but don't know them at all, have never seen them, don't even know their names.

So last night a long phone call from a friend resulted in 'Mum can I go for a sleep over at Ophelia's house?' (names changed to protect the innocent) and I stopped and thought.........

well why not, she goes out a lot by herself, she plays with this girl at school....

but....

I don't know the family, at all. I have never met the mum, I have never seen the house, I don't even know where it is! DH has seen the house once when he gave Ophelia a lift home from a tea at our house once (her mum obviously trusts US!) but that's it. 

I guess I just need to ring the mum and confirm the arrangements and try and assess from a phone call that all will be OK.

I asked on Twitter what people thought. And in response to a Question - Would you allow your 11yo daughter to go for a sleepover with parents you didn't know? and if not how would you go about 'vetting' those parents? I got many and varied answers! ranging from

Never! I would have to know the parents well

No, I would meet them over coffee first

I would ring them and chat on the phone.

I would facebook them (I don't have facebook and besides that I don't know the mum's name!)

to

Yeah, there comes an age when you can't know all the parents

Yeah if she's happy to go

Yes it will be fine, just check the mum knows.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So I'm none the wiser, I guess that DD will go, I guess there will be a phone call, I guess all will be fine. What would you do?

With a song in my heart.....

So it's nearly time for Magpie Monday over at the blog of Me and My Shadow again, and it seems I'm always either early or not there at all! So this week I'm here at the party and early too.

And what a party it is! This week's Magpie Monday find was gained completely free via the amazing Freecycle Network. I'm not often lucky enough to get the things that are offered that I really want but this week, well just look

The young among you will think it's a suitcase, in fact the older amongst you may also think that unless you had one of these retro delights.

Once opened all is revealed!

Yes! It is a record player! A tiny and gorgeous portable player of musical discs! And it works perfectly!

Cue hours of sifting through a terrible and embarassing collection of 45s ranging from old Chuck Berry's, original Elvis tunes (are you lonesome?) and onto the 1970s and 1980s with Roxy Music, City Boy,Scritti Politti and even some George Michael!

I have had a very enjoyable musical afternoon, listening to 'proper' music, complete with hum, clicks, scratches and glowing diodes.

I am old, nostalgic and very happy. What a super magpie find. 

Do you still have any records? Want to come round and dance in my bedroom?
 

Written for Magpie Monday 

Getting Fruity!

A fortnight ago (that's 2 weeks for my American readers) my Darling Daughter asked me to buy starfruit. She had had some once, long ago at school when they had a 'tasting day' and had liked it. I also like starfruit, so I bought one.

For those not in the know, it looks like this

and once sliced it is obvious why it is so named

 

I described it as tasting like a cross between an apple and a lemon, but the one 

I had was a little green :-). Any way the starfruit came home, was sliced, and DD took a tentative nibble before declaring, "I don't really like it, it wasn't like this at school". So I ate the starfruit.

This week she requested I buy a pomegranate. "Do you really like them?" I asked, "Yes, I love them, we should have them all the time!" "OK"

So I bought a pomegranate and presented it at breakfast

DD "what's that?"

Me "A Pomegranate"

DD "oh, OK"

I opened the pomegranate, i lovingly separated the pearls of ruby delights (stolen phrase from twitter)  and gave her some in a bowl. A tentative nibble, some mumbles, some discussion of if eating seeds would kill us. Finally........

Me "you didn't mean pomegranate did you? this isn't what you were expecting?"

DD "nope"

Me "what were you expecting?"

DD "a round purple thing, when you cut it, it's orange inside and squishy with black seeds that you spit out"

Me "ah"

Quick trip to Twitter to ask

Turns out she meant Passion Fruit!

So today I am eating pomegranate.

Who knows, soon I may be eating passion fruit.