Out running this morning, I stopped to pass the time of day with one of my nodding-acquaintance dog-walkers. He told me he was going to Liverpool today to watch Everton play for the last time at Goodison Park, before moving to a new stadium. He was quite emotional about it. That’s football fans for you.
He was going with his 90 year old sister, an Everton fan for 80 years, he told me. His wife was not going with him. She would be busy decorating the local church ready for tomorrow, Easter Sunday. We don’t do big processions with statues of saints but apparently the church still needs decorating. I’ve seen numerous photos of emotional, tearful Spaniards watching statues emerge from churches. At the moment, though, my favourite photo is this one of two penitentes from Bilbao.
The Morris dancers were out and about yesterday. I didn’t see them dance but I did see them congregating outside the White Lion pub in the village. I expect they’ll be busy somewhere today and on Monday.
I read that the latest thing is to decorate your house for Easter with carrot- or rabbit-shaped fairy lights and to put up and decorate an Easter tree. And of course you have to give presents, not just chocolate eggs. It has been dubbed Eastermas. One lot of market research tells us that 3.4 million Britons will spend £50 each on Easter gifts this year.
An American tradition of giving Easter baskets full of gifts is beginning to be seen here too - not in my house, I hasten to add! But then, there are also Hallowe’en ‘boo baskets’ - a collection of Halloween treats stored inside an oversized hamper, including sweets and chocolate , naturally, also mugs, candles, teddy bears and ornaments themed around the spooky season. And you could go crazy giving 1st of December boxes, Christmas Eve boxes, Valentine’s baskets and ‘burr baskets’, these last to keep you warm and happy in winter. Any traditional symbolism of different dates gets lost in commercialism and consumerism!
Happy Easter, however you choose to celebrate it!
Over in China they seem to be forging ahead with AI stuff. Humanoid robots have been taking part in a half-marathon. At the moment they need “handlers” running with them to make sure they operate properly and don’t fall over, so I don’t think they’re a real threat to the sporting world as yet. It is, however, a sign of progress. Will the day come when we need regulation about humanoid robots competing against humans in sporting events? Will there one day be the first humanoid robot standing for President somewhere? We shall see!
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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