Sunday August 31st 2025 "Stop thinking about France - and do it now! There's a bombshell new study on the horizon!!"

Friends, do you ever think about the French and their little world across the English Channel? If not, I suggest you stop thinking about it till local student has published what's certain to be a game-changing report on that steamy French world 20 miles away to the south of us!

Yes, it's that Lori Hurst from Nether Wallop, Hampshire, who has already "made waves" about Victorian novel - remember last year's bombshell story about her findings on George Eliot's breakthrough novel "Silas Marner" [source: Onion News for East Hampshire].

Kudos, Lori!!! 

To tell the truth, my light-to-medium wife Lois and I, who live in semi-leafy Liphook, Hampshire, literally just down the road from promising first year student Lori, had forgotten about this article and we make a resolution today to "hunt out" Lori's French project's findings, as a matter of urgency!

my light-to-medium wife Lois and I - a recent picture

"Why so urgent to 'dig out' a study about faraway France, Colin?", I hear you cry! "It's not as if Britain is in the EU any more, so surely France doesn't matter now!"

Britain and France: how they are (not!) related

Well, there's some truth in all of that, but for the fact that this weekend we're hosting my younger sister Jill from Ipswich, would you believe.

And guess what! This Sunday morning all three of us will be visiting nearby old stately home Petworth House, remodelled around 1700 by crusty aristocrat the 6th Duke of Somerset to be Britain's answer to the Palace of Versailles and a rival to all the great European palaces.

Did he succeed? Well, probably not, but there's a lovely cafeteria there and loads of old paintings on the walls, so it's probably a good enough try. Kudos, "Somerset", old man !!!

And as you can tell from the above pictures, Lois and I are paid-up "old codgers" - we'll be turning 80 next year, would you believe! And Jill who's only a sprightly 67 is getting read to become another "old codger" shortly - and today we're giving her some tips, which will start her off on the right foot, hopefully!

Lois and I are planning to join the local U3A "Intermediate Latin for Old Codgers" group next month, and we get our second "interview" in a couple of week's time, in our bid to "make the cut" (!). 

flashback to September 2024: local old codgers queue up outside

the Town Hall in a bid to join the local "Intermediate Latin for Old Codgers" group

It isn't easy being an "old codger" in England, but it's even harder in Hungary, as I learn from two articles sent to me last night by Tunde, my Hungarian penfriend. Two Hungarian old codgers, the Katalins, who collect vintage cars and tractors, have been expelled from the local U3A Intermediate Vintage Car group for putting some material on their Facebook page that wasn't supportive of the country's crazy Prime Minister Viktor Orban.  

how's your intermediate Hungarian? If it's any good (!),

you'll "twig" that this is the official letter banning the couple from 

the Vintage Car group - what madness !!!!

At least Lois and I can rest assured we won't get thrown out of the Intermediate Latin group because of our political views!

[I can think of lots of other reasons you two "noggins" might get thrown out for ! - Ed]

The Prime Minister himself, Viktor Orban, has an ageing 84-year-old father who has gifted him a so-called "modest" country estate, which was once owned by Europe's Hapsburg monarchs. And thanks to taxpayers' money, says the New York Post, this "modest estate" has, like Petworth House, been turned into yet another rival to the Palace of Versailles, complete with two swimming pools, once explained away by Viktor as "somewhere to wash his lambs in". 

Hungary's crazy Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, and his

so-called "modest" estate, once owned by Europe's royal Hapsburg family

What madness !!!!! But then Hungary was voted to be the EU's most corrupt state in 2024, so what can you expect !!!!

Being an old codger has its compensations, however, at least for Lois and me: we have a lovely day today with my sister Jill at Petworth House, plus a nice whatsapp video call with our daughter Sarah and her 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica, over in Perth, Australia. 

my sister Jill joins Lois and me this morning for our weekly

whatsapp video call with our daughter Sarah and twins Lily and Jessica,

9000 miles away in Perth, Western Australia

Plus we invite our other daughter Alison and family, who live about 5 miles away, to our house here in Liphook, for dinner, so eight of us in all: Alison plus husband Edward, and Josie (18), Rosalind (17) and Isaac (15). 

(clockwise round the table, from left) our son-in-law Edward, 

my sister Jill, Rosalind, Isaac, Lois, me, our daughter Alison, and Josie

What could be nicer?!

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

22:00 We go to bed - zzzzzzz!!!!!