Tuesday January 6th 2026 "Did YOU stay up late last night to watch the "Yummies Awards"? Bet you're feeling it today!!!"

Yes, Friends, are YOU feeling a bit bleary-eyed this morning? 

If so, I bet you were up late last night watching the annual "Yummies" award ceremony live from Hollywood USA, no less !!!! My wife Lois and I elected to pass on this one  and go to bed at our usual time, but we were up early this morning to get the results in this morning's Onion News. Maybe you did the same?!!!

Kudos, the World's bananas - you've done it again! 

And the story unquestionably sends a wistful smile to the lips of my wife Lois and me as we start the day here in semi-leafy Liphook, Hampshire UK, no question about that!

me and my wife Lois - some recent pictures

Fruits - be they bananas or not - are certainly on Yours Truly's mind this morning, because the date of my mini-presentation on "funny fruits" is looming large, because I've only got a week or so before I have to give it online. Yikes!!!!

Let me put my cards on the table at this point. [I wish you wouldn't keep doing that, Colin! - Ed]

"For my sins" I'm the leader of the local U3A Intermediate Languages for Old Codgers group, and it's our monthly online meeting on January 16th, during which members have asked me to give them a presentation on "funny fruit words in English".

flashback to last September: I queue up behind a bunch of other

"old codgers" seeking to join the local "Intermediate Languages 

for Old Codgers" group

For my upcoming presentation, I've discovered a few things already, but hardly enough for a 60-minute address. So if YOU know any words for fruits or interesting facts about them, please drop me a line - postcards only !!!!

Up till a thousand years ago, there were only really 2 words for fruits in English, which was okay because most of today's fruits weren't  known about, coming as they do from hot countries. The larger fruits were all called "apples", and the smaller ones "berries". What madness, wasn't it !!!!!

Dates were called "fingeraeppla" (finger-apples) bananas were either "appels of paradis" or "earth-apples". And when it says in the Bible that Eve "tempted Adam with an apple", it could easily have been a pear or a melon, because those words didn't exist in English at the time. 

Eve tempting Adam with an apple - or was it a melon perhaps?

Later, when people travelled further in the world, they, for example, discovered tangerines (first encountered in Tangiers, Morocco). The word "peach" was a mangled  pronunciation of "Persian", and "currant" was a mangled pronunciation of "Corinth". Grapes were so-called because you had to "grab" them with a hook, allegedly (!).

Also in my researches today, I discover that the tomatoes, an Aztec fruit, was originally not eaten either in UK or US, and only used for decoration, being thought to be poisonous. However, Spaniards and Italians  had no such qualms, it's reported. Thomas Jefferson introduced them in the States 1789, but Americans initially remained unconvinced, and didn't start eating them in large quantities till around 1830, by which time they must have "gone off", surely?

I think we should be told, don't you! 

In those far-off days there was also great fear about traders and sailors contracting scurvy, known to be caused by the lack of fresh fruit. The Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and Arabs planted citrus trees along trade routes, which must have looked nice! 

The British Navy, on the other hand, gave sailors lime-juice (lime-water), hence the word 'limeys' applied to British sailors in Australia, Canada and New Zealand, and later in the US.

What a crazy world they lived in, in those far-off times !!!!

Today, Tuesday, however, is a great day for study, for both me and also Lois, today, as the snow is still on the ground, and more falls this morning. We're hoping that the rain forecast for tonight will "slush" all that snow away (no pun intended!!!), and we'll wake up to a different world tomorrow, all being well. But we'll see.

snow falling on our tiny back garden this morning

While I'm studying up on my fruits, Lois is studying a bit of Intermediate Latin (as you do!). We're both members of the local U3A Intermediate Latin for Old Codgers group. 

Our group meetings are a bit in abeyance at the moment because Joe, our leader, is in hospital in Portsmouth with back issues, although the latest word is that Joe is itching to get back in the saddle, so we suspect it won't be long before group meetings resume.

It's difficult for Lois, who's having to do the most "catching up" with her Latin. We both joined the group only recently, and we're very much the "newbies", because the other members pretty much have been in the group for years, and all know each other really well: we call them "Joe's harem", because they tend to fuss over Joe a lot, making sure he's all right, and feeling fit enough to take the class etc etc.

flashback to a typical meeting of Joe's "Intermediate Latin for Old Codgers" group,

Joe writes on the whiteboard while his devoted existing members "Joe's Harem",

Lois and I call them (!), fuss over him and check he's feeling okay etc etc

- what madness !!!!

It's possible that Lois may give up on the group, because it's a lot of work for her catching up with everybody else - she did a Wheelock's Latin course, but it was some years ago.

My guess is that she'll persevere, however. She's nothing if not determined, and she hates to give up on a goal, once she's set it for herself. So we'll see!

flashback to June: I showcase Lois's old copy of "Wheelock's Latin"

Watch this space! [Latin: hunc locum observa!!!]

19:00 After a hard day's study, and the snow still on the ground outside, it's nice to relax this evening with another helping of Lois's stew that she made a couple of days ago, followed by another slice of her delicious 2025 Christmas Cake - yum yum!

(left) flashback to a couple of days ago: Lois prepares a stew,

and (right) she sorts out two helpings of her 2025 Christmas cake - yum yum!

Not all species are lucky enough to be able to dine, like us, sitting at a table in front of the TV, however, as we learn tonight from this week's edition of QI XL, the comedy science quiz show, presented by Sandi Toksvig, where we learn some fascinating facts about the eating habits of the starfish, a creature which initially looks like a creature with five legs:

However, the starfish is actually all head. Scientists looking for the head gene found that it was all over the little fellow, even in the tips of the 'arms'. There was no 'torso gene', it was completely missing. And if you define a leg, or a foot, as an organ of support and locomotion for the body, then a starfish has 15,000 feet: tiny tube feet, which are all over the starfish's body, so basically it's all head and lots and lots of feet.

"But where's the little guy's mouth, Colin?", I hear you cry!

Well, the starfish mouth is at the centre of the underside, as you might expect, but they have a peculiar way of eating, to put it mildly. 

Hence, perhaps, the standard question that a starfish couple might ask each other every evening - "Are we eating out again tonight, darling?"

What a crazy world we live in !!!!!

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

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

Monday January 5th 2026 "Have YOU got plans for summer this year? Some geese have got theirs already would you believe!"

Yes, Friends, with travel supplements in all the "nationals", have YOU got your plans for Summer 2026? Some people are still uncertain, but one local goose is 'bucking the trend', which is nice! 

This morning's Onion News has more:

Poor local goose!!!! 

But that little fellah's dread of spending idle days with his parents up in Scotland brings a vague smile to the lips of me and my wife Lois this morning, as we struggle to get out of bed here in semi-lovely Liphook, Hampshire, to put it mildly!!!

me and my wife Lois - some recent pictures

"But why the vague smiles today, Colin?", I hear you cry!

Well, seeing as how you're obviously "gagging" to know, it's because, like that local goose when he's back home in Scotland with his parents, Lois and I have to face some forced inactivity ourselves today, having woken up to a light blanket of snow, which will keep us from doing much again, which is a pity!

[So what's new! - Ed]

(above) the scenes outside our house at around 8 am this morning,

and (below) a bit later, around 11:30am - not much improvement, is there!

Poor us !!!!

Is "doing nothing" necessarily a bad thing, however, once in a while? Steve, our American brother-in-law, sends us an interesting article in today's Guardian by Anita Chaudhuri, suggesting that idleness can help creative juices.

Psychologist Sandi Mann of the University of Lancashire says her research has revealed that boredom, far from being a bad thing, can make us more creative. A group of participants was given the tedious tasks of copying out numbers from a telephone directory, and at the end they were asked to come up with as many uses as possible for a plastic cup, and they came up with far more answers than did a control group who'd, presumably, been allowed to do something more fun, presumably. And a third group, who were given an even duller task than the first group, just reading telephone numbers out loud, did even better at creative brainstorming.

Mann says that when there's nothing much to do, we start mind-wandering and daydreaming, and these two states have been linked to creativity.

I wonder....!

At my age, and Lois's age, however, sitting around all morning daydreaming, or spending the afternoon in bed, isn't necessarily the best thing, unless done in moderation - something we're both quite good at, which is nice! 

And are we getting enough protein to sustain us in all our daydreaming and napping? Channel 4 tonight is going to tell us tonight, no doubt about that!

One of the programme's guinea-pigs is Suzi, who's in her 70's, so of particular interest to Lois and me.

Yes, our son-in-law Francis, who lives with our daughter Sarah and their twin daughters in Perth, Australia, told Lois and me that we needed to up our protein intake, when the family were staying with us last summer.

flashback to July: Lois with our daughter Sarah and her husband Francis

and their twin daughters in London on their last UK visit:

Francis gave Lois and me some useful nutritional advice during his stay with us

Younger, inactive adults can get by on 0.75g of protein a day per kilo of body weight we're told. However, for the over 65s, maybe doing a little light walking each day, this rises to 1g to 1.2g of protein a day.  

Lois is about 9 stone, and I'm about 10 stone or so, so that means about 68g for Lois and 76g for me, whatever that means (!). 

But what's the best way to get our protein? Tonight's TV programme tells us not to take any notice of what's said on social media, at least, because only 2% of that information is accurate. And we shouldn't take any notice of any "high protein" labels by themselves, because these products could be also full of sweeteners and ultra-high-processed ingredients detrimental to your gut bacteria.

Also, ignore the quick fixes of protein bars, pills or powders, because they won't give you the fibre you need, and won't slow down your digestion, which isn't good, either. Chewing is good, because it makes you feel full when you should be feeling full. So stick to whole foods for your protein sources - eggs, meat, fish and dairy - you know the kind of thing!

Plus, have protein components at every meal, not just your evening meal. A lot of people don't have much protein in their breakfast, so the programme suggests 2 eggs scrambled, plus wholemeal toast.

Since our son-in-law Francis' visit in July, I've been breakfasting every day on cereal with fruit, followed by a boiled egg and 2 slices of wholemeal toast.

Job done!

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

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

Sunday January 4th 2026 "Were YOU stuck at home today and unable to travel? Well, join the club!!!"

Did you read about poor Tim in the Onion News this morning? Like many, he's had to phone into work to explain his unexpected absence. Maybe YOU did the same - there's a lot of it going around at the moment!

Poor Tim !!!!!

And reading the story here in leafy Liphook, Hampshire this chilly morning puts me and my wife Lois in a bit of a quandary, would you believe!

me and my wife Lois - a recent picture

We ourselves, like poor Tim (see Onion story above) are intending to 'hunker down' at home today, for the third day running, but, as we've been officially retired for nearly 20 years, we're uncertain who to ring to explain our absence from our usual walks over places like Radford Park, Liphook United's "hallowed turf", or Old Man Lowsley's Farm etc. 

Somebody must be missing our mysterious absence, if it's only the ducks in the duck pond!

Who we gonna call haha !!!!!!

flashback to us in happier times: walking through nearby leafy Radford Park last August

with my younger sister Jill (67), checking out the ducks on the duckpond

There's actually more we can do in the house today than there is outdoors, however, so the "inclement weather" is playing to our strengths, which is nice. And we feel very "warmed up" straight off the bat, talking on whatsapp for our regular Sunday morning "catch-up" with our daughter Sarah, who lives 9000 miles away in Perth, Western Australia, with husband Francis and 12-year-old twins Lily and Jessica.

On Christmas Day, Western Australia was officially the hottest place on earth, would you believe, with temperatures of 104F (40C). Yikes !!!!!

Awwww!!!!

Sarah and family have just returned from a 2-week camping holiday on Australia's south coast - at Bremer Bay on the Southern Ocean, and poor Sarah has to start back at work tomorrow, not just in Perth but also - online - in Evesham UK. What utter utter utter madness, isn't it !!!!

Yes, she's earning her unofficial moniker of  "Sarah Two Jobs", that's for sure! But the family will need the extra cash when the girls start secondary school in February at private Anglican school St James High School. Sarah and Francis have had to shell out already for the uniforms, books, etc and now they've got to buy the girls some so-called "MacBooks" each, or some-such nonsense, whatever those are when they're at home !!!!

the school principal, Adrian Pree, with some of the school's students 

All that warm sunshine they're having down there has certainly warmed Lois and me up considerably, which is nice!!!

Later today, however, we're considerably "chilled" again, and not completely in a good way (!), by new photos and texts from our other daughter Alison, currently on holiday in northern Sweden, with husband Edward and their 3 teenage offspring: Josie (19), Rosalind (17) and Isaac (15). They'll be flying back late today, however, although they're coming back tonight on the afternoon flight from Trondheim, just over the border in Norway. Brrrrr!!!!!

The temperature in Trondheim today has 'boasted' a "cool" 14F  (-10C) as its so-called "high", would you believe.

What a crazy planet we live on !!!!!

And luckily there's lots on "the box" this evening to keep Lois and me "moderated", at strictly room-temperature, so that's all good!

Yes, this evening there's a fascinating look-back at the great snows of the winter 1962/3, starts us shivering again, which is a pity! Lois and I both remember that winter well - the worst in the UK for 200 years, when we struggled to get to school through all the snow. We were both just 16 - poor us!!!!

flashback to 1963: me and Lois at 16 - awwwww, bless us !!!!

And how nice to see again veteran news-broadcasters Cliff Michelmore, Derek Hart and Kenneth Allsopp all reporting on the so-called "Big Freeze", back in 1963, when they too were in the prime of their youth.

In tonight's TV documentary from 1963, here's the late Kenneth Allsopp illustrating the cause of the Big Freeze, using some surprisingly primitive, and flimsy, so-called "visual aids" (!!!). Well it was over 60 years ago, so fair enough perhaps!!!!

An alternative explanation came from the US, however, as Kenneth explains here:

There's a patch of the Pacific Ocean, he explains, hundreds and thousands of square miles, that had become unusually hot the previous summer, and stayed like that during the autumn and winter. As the result, so much moisture was sent up into the atmosphere, that it switched all the upper air currents, and exaggerated their north-south swings. The resulting cold air was sent first up to the north and then plunging right down into the south, where the Gulf of Mexico had an unusually bad winter, It then swang up again and then down, descending on Europe, apparently, as Kenneth illustrates: 

A likely story !!!!

For the UK, however, some thought the problems we were experiencing that winter stemmed from the fact that we Brits weren't wearing enough clothes. The wife of the then Minister of Power, Richard Wood, came on TV to give the public a lesson or two on suitable winterwear.

Here, veteran broadcaster the late Derek Hart recalls, rather sniffily perhaps, Mrs Wood's surprise intervention.

What a crazy world we lived in, in those far-off times !!!!!

Will this do?

[Oh just go to bed! - Ed]

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