seasonal tweetings

Woken at midday by budgies squawking something like: "Take this bloody blanket off our cage."

Frost on the fields.

Cleaning Lady ducked in the door and presented the Young Squire with socks.

The Young Squire did his best to be gracious.

Ah yes.

What do you get the man who has nothing?

Socks apparently.

Sean Landers dropped in for a visit. He's on a trip home from Taiwan where he teaches.

He joined the Mammy and me for tea in the kitchen.

He said: "I can't believe how upset the Irish get about a little flooding. We had two earthquakes in Taiwan the night before I left. People die in floods over there. The weather can be really extreme. Here everyone reacts to the least thing as if it's never happened before. For crying out loud, we've had snow before. Snow isn't any colder now than it ever was."

I replied: "They're all watching idiot climate change disaster movies and they believe them."

Popped into Newbridge.

Yelena the Russian waitress in the Cafe Des Beaux Parvenus at Newbridge Silverware presented me with a wrapped package.

I checked under the wrapper to make sure it wasn't socks.

Scones.

The noble Heelers licked his cherubic lips.

"Those are for my Lily," she advised warningly.

This is her name for the Mammy.

Headed for the town of Naas for coffee with the Brezzer in the Costa.

She may be singing at midnight mass in Kilcullen on Christmas eve.

I hope she is.

Found a book by Saint Thomas Akempis while browsing.

A passage caught my eye.

It went: "Why do you worry so much about what people think of you? It is because you do not worry enough about what God thinks of you."

This hit most nearly upon my heart.

Posted off some Xmas greetings.

Actually postcards made from photos I took at the Mammy's 80th birthday.

Surrealistic, moi?

Well they make quirky greeting cards.

They've got buckets of quirk.

Quick trip to Dublin.

Met Giovanna for coffee in the Cafe Insomnia near Trinity College.

She gave me socks.

Savile Row socks.

I never knew Savile Row produced socks.

I've heard of Savile Row suits alright.

But these were definitely socks.

Paddy Pup is going to have a field day.

These are a good deal classier than the socks he normally masticates.

I had no Christmas present for Giovanna.

Serve her right for giving me socks.

Rendezvous at evening with Jinwoo from Korea.

She gave me a diary.

Thank heaven.

Anything but socks.

Back home to give the hamster cage a pre Christmas cleaning.

Felt demotivated and couldn't force myself to do it.

Watched a Seinfeld instead.

"Don't worry Hammy," I told her, "I'll clean your cage tomorrow."

MC Hamster's whiskers twitched reproachfully.

"I'll believe it when I see it," she muttered.

Walked Paddington through the midnight air.

Chicken and chips from the Chinese.

Sat in the hall in the wee small hours contemplating our Christmas tree.

An odd peace touched my heart.

May it touch yours also bold traveller of the internet.

Whoever you are.