My Spanish sister just sent a message asking me what the weather is like here! It seems she has a friend who lives not far from here who had sent her a photo of hailstones raining down. Yes, indeed, we too had hailstones. At least we don’t have sandstorms blown in from the Sahara, which is what happens where she lives near Cádiz. Having said that, there was an occasion a few years ago when freak weather sent sand from the Sahara over a large part of England. Our skylight windows were filthy with it.
So far today we have had dull and cold and windy first thing, some blue sky and sunshine, hail and rain, and now cloudy sunshine again. Never a dull moment!
We have swans on the millpond again. Every year for the last few years they turn up at about this time.
I have sometimes wondered if they come to nest here but we’ve never yet seen cygnets. They can be quite aggressive and a couple of years ago chased off a resident white duck, a long-term resident of the millpond, whose body was found some time later further up the valley, perhaps attacked by a fox. Maybe it’s because swans are “royal” birds that they think they can rule the pond!
In the kitchen, tucked into one section of the wine rack, there are some ancient boxes of matches, really ancient, daring back to a time when we had a coal-burning stove running the central hearing system. Whenever there is a family birthday I am commissioned to make a cake - some like chocolate cake, others prefer my lemon yoghurt sponge cake - decorated with butter cream icing and “sprinkles”. For the small people we add the appropriate number of candles; for the grown-ups only one candle is provided. The candles have to be lit at least twice, if not three times: once for the birthday person to blow them out and make a wish and relit again for the small people to have a turn at blowing out the candles. (I might consider the hygiene implications of so many people blowing across a cake but really tis is bot the time or place for that). Granddaughter Number Two likes to be the one who lights the candles, using the ancient matches.
Today I read that matchboxes have become collectors’ items. Probably not the ones we have as they are almost certainly too old and battered. As a rule collectors seem to prefer their trophies in pristine, mint condition. The matchbox , I have read, took off in the late 1800s when manufacturers realised that every box could be an advert and it became an unexpected art form, with colourful labels featuring everything from political messages to product marketing.
And now, apparently, matchboxes are the latest home accessory to get a luxury makeover.
“At the upmarket department store chain Selfridges, sales of posh matchboxes are up 121% year-on-year and it said they were “the must-have home accessory for 2026”. The store has more than doubled its range to meet demand, selling over 100 styles at prices ranging from £5 to more than £230.”
Here are Paddywax matches, at the cheaper end of the market, costing only £5 a box.
And here are Panthère de Cartier matches, a set of three matchboxes for the knockdown price of £235.
Oh, boy!
“Jo Laing, who designs and sells ceramic-topped matchboxes, has seen sales rise 60% year on year and her work is now stocked in Harrods. She said they “sell out so quickly we struggle to keep them in stock”. Her reusable limited edition boxes retail for £70.”
It appears that people might not have the budget for a posh candle, but can stretch to fancy matches instead. Bia Bezamat, cultural insights director at market research group Kantar, said: “There’s a sustained trend for ‘little treats’ … It’s a response to cost of living pressures: people want small, affordable pockets of joy to brighten their day.”
Maybe you could just not have candles, a home-fashion trend I have never got into. Some people clearly have more money than sense. But perhaps when we are constantly being reminded of how the cost of living is rising, some people need reminding that luxury of some kind still exists.
In more serious spheres, yesterday “hundreds of people gathered in Trafalgar Square in London and presented signs reading: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.” Hundreds of demonstrators sat on camping chairs and on the ground as they held up their placards on Saturday afternoon. The Metropolitan police said 212 people had been arrested by 4.50pm, with their ages ranging from 27 to 82.”
So much for rulings that the ban was illegal!
And here’s a link to an article about people betting on the outcome of the wars which are going on. Perhaps gamblers just have no shame! But these are gamblers betting huge amounts of money, another way of getting rich from the misfortunes of others.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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