I woke up this morning to the sound of tree surgeons at work. Returning from my run yesterday I saw them at work too. Today I saw them removing overhanging branches from the driveway of the across the road neighbours’ house before I set off for my run. As I returned there was no sign of them but I’ve heard them from time to time all day so far. It seems to be work going on in the gardens of a row of houses a short distance along the road from here where there are some very large mature trees. I’m hoping they’re just pruning rather than cutting down whole trees. And If the latter, then I wonder if they have permission. We are fortunate to have plenty of trees around here but we need to keep them. I am opposed to cutting down trees without good reason.
Weatherwise the day has been odd. There was very heavy rain in the dead of night. Thundery showers and a light breeze are forecast for today. I wore a light raincoat when I ran first thing but despite the dismal forecast I did not get rained on. Neither did thunder occur. Later I contemplated hanging some washing out to dry but it was just starting to rain, not heavily but rain nonetheless! So we are back to hanging washing indoors to dry. It has been very pleasant over the last couple of months to hang washing in the garden and to being it in splendidly dry. Of course, since I hung the washing on a drier in the spare room, the sun has emerged once again. So it goes.
Important people have been looking at the Bayeux Tapestry.
The Labour MP Lisa Nandy, accompanied by the British Museum chair, George Osborne, views the tapestry.
King Charles, alongside Queen Camilla, speaks to Emmanuel Macron as they view a section of the tapestry at the British Museum in London.
It is interesting that Lisa Nandy had to wear a protective apron but King Charles and his party did not.
Here’s a link to an interesting update on the tapestry.
Here’s a cartoon portraying the black-clad, balaclava-wearing “patriots” involved in the anti-immigration protests over the weekend.
They call themselves Patriot Platform - an army of Christian Patriots. ii’s curious how the followers of a man who advocated turning the other cheek and tolerating people from other races end up being violent and claiming to do so in the name of religion. From the Crusades to colonising English and Spanish forcibly converting Native Americans to Patriot Platform!
The founder of Patriot Platform, aka Danny Tommo, like other rightwing agitators was privately educated - hardly a deprived child then! After some time in prison for attempted kidnapping he "claims to have turned his life around, attending church every week and 'praying for forgiveness'." If he’s going round inciting violence he’s going to need to do some more praying for forgiveness!
Incidentally, on the subject of private schools, Prince George has just begun his time at Eton. It has always struck me as a strange practice to send the children you love away to boarding school for quite long chunks of time. It would be interesting to have a future king educated at a local comprehensive school, carefully selected of course!
As another member of the royal family has been in the news lately, Harry having brought his family back to England, I wondered about surnames. Well, it seems that young George began primary school as George Cambridge but at Eton he will be George Wales, his name varying according to the title given to his parents. So presumably Harry’s children will be called Sussex, as their parents are the duke and duchess of Sussex. And all of them can fall back on Mountbatten-Windsor, if they so choose.
So much choice and apparently so easy.
Our Granddaughter Number Two went through quite a bit of red tape and paid I don’t know how mu h money to change her surname. She didn’t want her father’s name, which figured on her birth certificate, but wanted our family name.
Surnames are interestingly different in different countries. Spain large.y used he father’s and mother’s surnames together. So former King Juan Carlos is Bonbón y Borbón, King Felipe is Borbón y Grecia while Leonor, Princess of Asturias, heir to the Spanish throne, is Borbón y Ortiz. More ordinary folk don’t bother with ‘y’ between the surnames.
I like the Danish option. in 2006 Denmark reinstated patronymic and matronymic surnames as an option. Thus, parents Karl Larsen and Anna Hansen can name a son Karlsen or Annasen and a daughter Karlsdotter or Annasdotter.
That’s enough nonsense for today.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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