Is that it?

Hello everyone. I hope that you are ok. I come to you this evening from the sofa with the telly off because I am avoiding the football. (The football is back this weekend for those that don't know, and Man Utd appear to be starting this year as rubbish as they finished last year.) 

This morning in church, a very nice man who is also a Prison Chaplain was talking about spending time in a youth prison with children who are serving life sentences. What are we doing to the young people? (HOH was a bit shocked because he misheard the story and thought that the children were aged between 7 and 8  when actually the group size was between 7 and 8 people.) He was also talking about Cancel Culture and how people on the Internet can say the wrong thing and then get cancelled. Having said that, I have just been watching a woman on YouTube who is in a bit of a bad mood with her life, and she is blaming the moon. And her microwave. Good Grief. Some people may well deserve to be cancelled. 

We have had a very quiet week. It's mid-August - school holidays, nothing much is happening really, and I have just been working and coming home and lying face down on the settee if necessary. I know this makes me sound like a miserable crow, but we don't usually do our days out much in the school holidays because all the little Devon villages are full of children giving their Mums a bad time. They don't need us clogging everything up. We will be back out there when school is back on. 

We did go out to Mount Edgcumbe for a day, which is a very short ferry ride across to Cornwall. There's a big house, which no living soul I know has ever been in and a nice cafe. Nice or not, we won't be troubling it again because it was £17.00 for two coffees and two cakes. SEVENTEEN OF YOUR ENGLISH POUNDS. Although it came with a free wasp. At one point, HOH had to rescue it because its little feet were stuck in his jam. It rewarded him by dive bombing him for the rest of the time that we were there. It is always a nice place to walk around. At this time of year, we tend to go over a bit earlier in the day before it gets too busy.  They now have a new "adventure" which is called the Alpaca Experience. (They are not specific about the nature of the experience.) Anyway, you are supposed to book early to avoid disappointment. (I won't be disappointed). 

I did notice that, even though it is boiling, many of the trees have tinges of yellow about them. It is apparently climate change that is making the leaves drop. It is apparently a good year for insects as well. Although it's not all good news. The spiders are bigger, and they are coming inside because it's too warm for them outside. As someone who woke in the middle of the night to find a spider on her face - a massive one - I think you will find. My trauma is understandable. (Trauma made worse by HOH finding it hilarious).  So, it's early in the year, but there is a hint of Autumn in the air.  Also, a colleague's sister is working extra hours a week on Saturday at Home Bargains so that they can put the Christmas Decorations on the shelves. Look, don't shoot the messenger. 

Actually, some things did happen this week. Just not to me.

1. My friend got a puppy. (Everyone is getting kittens and puppies, and I am finding it annoying.)

2. Plymouth hosted the World Fireworks Championships. I wish I liked Fireworks more. People walk down to the beach at the end of our road to watch them. The mood was slightly brought down the next day when all the sea swimmers realised that no one on the beach watching the fireworks had cleaned up after their dogs. To be fair, it was dark, but that's no consolation when you have one leg in your swim shorts and suddenly realise that the other foot is in something squidgy. 

3. Hamilton started at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth. I have seen it a couple of times, so I'm not going. However, it is a coup for the City and seems to be doing very well. It's excellent, and no one should let the fact that most of it is rap put them off. It's very accessible - even for old farts like me, and it will make you cry. Makes a change from the Meatloaf Musical (again) and a Matthew Bourne Ballet (again)

Right, I have a book about Oliver Cromwell to polish off, and we are watching that Whitstable Pearl programme. It seems ok - not what you would call riveting, but there is a lot worse on. Although I did watch the third one last night, and even when they revealed the killer, I didn't know who he was or why he had done it.  We also watched that Bookish. I tried to like it, and I did watch it all, but I found it a bit hammy. Joely Richardson should take herself to one side and give herself a good talking to. I think it is one of those programmes that will probably grow better as it ages, but at the moment, everyone seems a bit too pleased with themselves. Also, whoever allowed the lines

"Who was he?"

"He was everything"

to get through probably needs firing.

Anyway, sorry this has been so boring. I thought of writing something a bit exciting, like an international skiing accident or an incident with a bow and arrow, but these days there's enough of that sort of thing about anyway. Have a good week.