‘Tis the season of ye additive.

What is it with food people, the ones who decide that it’s a good idea to lace food with booze, for instance? It sells is the answer. In a moment of ‘idea spasm’ when shopping for ‘someone difficult’, some shoppers think that buying a jar of overpriced marmalade that has brandy or whisky added is a jolly good idea. When aforementioned marmalade is unsullied by alcohol, it tastes good; but laced with booze, it tastes odd. Once the idea gets a grip, there’s an outbreak of buying additive-added foodstuffs. Double cream is probably bad for the waistline, but with added … Continue reading ‘Tis the season of ye additive.

Face to Face with Napoleon

“Can Simon come out to play?” It was a simple request to the father of a boy along the modest terrace of houses where we lived way back probably 70 years ago. The father, like my own dad, was a young police officer and the police houses belonging to an estate where the big estate house served as a training establishment for the force. My father and this neighbour of ours would both have been instructors at the Police College. “I’m sorry” came the reply “ he’s busy reading ‘Face to Face with Napoleon‘ so he cannot. I went home … Continue reading Face to Face with Napoleon

Who chucks the rain down?

My son, who did philosophy at University, came out with this question when he was about 3 or so. When he’d only just learnt to talk and walk really, so the signs were there very early that he was going to be doing a lot of thinking. He certainly did not do much sleeping and I recall with a shudder the long nights of questioning. Including the one where he admonished me for going ‘off piste’ when reading Postman Pat, telling me that Mrs Goggins could not possibly be a bank robber, “it just did n’t add up”. I recall … Continue reading Who chucks the rain down?