Mandag den 27. februar 2017 kl 16:30 til tirsdag den 28. februar 2017 kl 16:29

16:45 Lois kommer tilbage igen – hun har brugt hele eftermiddagen på at hjælpe Ursula, sin veninde, med at besøge sin lægeklinik i Churchdown. Lois har et hjerte af guld – det har jeg ikke nogen tvivl om !

17:00 Jeg hopper op på min kondicykel og jeg tilbagelægger endnu 6 miles (10km). Jeg tænder for min smartphone og ser på ”1984s bedste sange” på YouTube.

jeg kigger tilbage på 1984s bedste sange, mens jeg cykler

Jeg kan igen ikke modstå fristelsen til at kigge tilbage på 1984 i vores livshistorie – du godeste! Det var et vigtigt år for mig, Lois og vores to døtre Alison og Sarah på henholdsvis 9 og 7 år. Vi boede dengang i USA, og det var vores sidste hele år, før vi flyttede i august 1985 tilbage til England. Vi benyttede lejligheden til at rejse lidt og besøge nye steder, herunder Virginia, Florida og Quebec.

Min søster, Kathy, tog Alison og Sarah med tilbage hos os.

Børnene havde boet i 2 dage hos Kathy og Steve i deres lejlighed i Washington,

så Lois og jeg kunne bruge weekenden på at rejse lidt rundt omkring Maryland.

Alison, Sarah og Lois i Canada (sommeren 1984)

Lois i Canada

Virginia (efteråret 1984), da vi fire stadig

var centret af universet

– du godeste, lykkelige dage!

18:00 Lois og jeg spiser aftensmad og bruger resten af aftenen på at lytte til radio, et interessant program, der handler om bandeord. Programmets vært er den charmerende Matthew Sweet.

Vi har ikke hørt denne serie før. Det lader til, at serien drejer sig om filosofiske emner, og kredser om en samtale mellem Matthew og forskellige universitetlektorer, journalister og andre eksperter, samt en berømt kvindelig komiker (Jane Bussman). Men lokalet lyder som et værtshus, eller muligvis et radiostudie, der er blevet konverteret til et midlertidigt værtshus – der er jeg ikke helt sikker på.

Matthew Sweet, programmets charmerende vært

Jane Bussmann, den berømte komiker

På trods af, at klokken kun er 20 hører vi en masse engelske bandeord i løbet af programmet – du godeste! Sikke et vanvid!!!

Diskussionen er livlig og morsom, selvom mange af gruppens konklusioner er ganske indlysende. Gruppen diskuterede historien af bandeord i det engelske sprog. De tidligste bandeord kredsede alle om religiøse ord og udtryk, fordi det religiøse liv dengang gennemsyrede samfundet: Gud, Kristus, Fanden, helvede osv. Men samtidigt med udviklingen af et mere sekulært samfund, blev disse slags bandeord mindre magtfulde, så folk i stedet for religiøse tabuer satte fokus på toilettet og sex – uha!

Fordelene af bandeord bliver diskuteret: et indtryk af oprigtighed – folk der ofte bruger bandeord, lyver mindre, ifølge undersøgelser. Bandeord gør os selvfølgelig til at føle os bedre hurtigere, hvis vi for eksempel brænder os på noget varmt, kogende vand osv. Og det er undertiden en god måde til at knytte bånd til en gruppe eller omgangskreds på.

To sprogede folk finder bande-ord mere tilfredstillende på deres første sprog, end deres anden sprog. Da jeg høre dette, mindes jeg, at danskerne har adopteret entusiastisk det engelske sprogs f-ord, selvom det er et meget svagere udtryk på dansk end på engelsk, hvilket undertiden volder problemer. De hyppigste danske bandeord henviser stadig til religiøse tabuord, især fanden.

Vi hører f-ordet flere gange i løbet af programmet. Matthews eksperterne er enige om, at f-ordet kan være meget effektivt og magtesfuldt, og er uundgæligt i visse omstændigheder. Det berømte digt af Philip Larkin er selvfølgelig citeret:

They f*** you up, your mum and dad.

They may not mean to, but they do.

They fill you with the faults they had

And add some extra, just for you.

Jane Bussman, den berømte komiker, gentager sin velkendte joke om den kvindelige patient, der bønfalder sin læge i en uendelighed om at kysse hende. Han afviser gang efter gang, og forklarer, at det ville stride imod hans professionelle adfærdskodeks, men hun fortsætter med at insistere. Lægen bliver endelig meget irriteret, og insisterer på, at han ikke skal kysse hende. ”I shouldn’t really be f***ing you”, tilføjer han. Du godeste – sikke en skør verden vi lever i !!!!

22:00 Vi går i seng – zzzzzz!!!!!

03:45 Jeg står tidligt op og laver én af mine rutinemæssige danske ordforrådtest.

08:00 Jeg skynder mig ind i køkkenet og laver to kopper te. Jeg tager dem med op i soveværelset og kryber under dynen til Lois. Vi drikker teen og står op. Vi spiser morgenmad.

10:00 Min ven, ”Magyar” Mike kommer og vi lærer ungarsk i en time. Jeg hører den seneste nyheder om Mikes barnebarn, Stephen, der for tiden læser på et universitet i Prag. Mike og Mary, Mikes kone, skal besøge Stephen i en uge senere på måneden. Næste uge rejser Mike til London sammen med sin tidligere arbejdskollega, George, for at besøge den kongelige mynte. Jeg fortæller ham, at Lois og jeg besøgte den kongelige mynte i Perth i Australien sidste år, også den føderale mynte i Denver i 1980’erne, men jeg er ikke sikker på, han lytter – du godeste!!! Mike er en meget flink mand, men han er ikke god til at lytte – det ved jeg med sikkerhed!!!! Han har tendens til at trykke kun på”send” knappen – jeg synes ikke, han ved, hvor ”modtag ” knappen er på sin usynlige ”kontrolpanel”. Du godeste!

 

tilbageblik til juni 2016.

Lois og jeg besøger byen Perths kongelige mynte

Tilbageblik til 1983. Vi besøger US-mynten i Denver.

11:00 Mike skal til af sted. Lois og jeg slapper af med en kop kaffe i sofaen.

12:00 Vi spiser frokost og bagefter går jeg i seng og tager mig en gigantisk eftermiddagslur.

15:00 Jeg står op og kigger lidt på nettet. Jeg finder Morten Ingemanns seneste tegneseriestribe. Du godeste! Jeg får lidt af et chok, da jeg ser den – det ved jeg med sikkerhed!

Danskeren Ingemann er min yndlingstegner  – ingen tvivl om det! Han interesserer sig meget for grimme, overvægtige, midaldrende eller ældre folk, de slags mennesker, som de fleste tegnere sjældent giver opmærksomhed til.

Jeg kan godt lide Ingemanns attitude – han afviser instinktivt negative følelser om alderdom. Han ved godt, at menneskers bedste år hyppigst er i fremtiden – i 80’erne og 90’erne. Med andre ord er det bedste endu ikke er kommet.

Alle ved, at ældre menneskers hukommelse har tendens til at forværres, men Ingemann ser det i et positivt lys. I dag ser vi en gammel mand, måske i 80’erne, der har ansøgt til et job og er blevet indkaldt til jobsamtale. Chefen fortæller ham, at han har læst hans ansøgning og desværre er han overkvalificeret. Chefen opmuntrer manden til at vente og sende en ny ansøgning, når han er lidt ældre – med andre ord, når han har glemt nogle af sine kvalifikationer. Kom så, Morten – du fokuserer altid på det positive, hvilket jeg godt kan lide!!!

15:45 Lois og jeg går en kort tur i nabolaget. Vores rute: New Barn Lane, Linden Avenue og tilbage igen. Vi går forbi min afdøde mors hus, og jeg bemærker, at de nye ejere har installeret en ny parabol på husets formur. For 25 år siden fik min far en Sky-parabola installeret på husets sidemur, men den forsvandt for mange år siden.  Tiden flyver!

16:20 Vi kommer hjem og slapper af med en kop te i sofaen.

English translation

16:45 Lois comes back again - she has spent all afternoon helping Ursula, her friend, to visit her doctor's clinic in Churchdown. Lois has a heart of gold - I have no doubts about that!

17:00 I jump up on my exercise bike and I clock up another 6 miles (10km). I turn on my smartphone and look at "1984s best songs" on YouTube.

I look back at 1984's best songs while cycling

I again cannot resist the temptation to look back at 1984 in our life story - my god! It was an important year for me, Lois and our two daughters Alison and Sarah, respectively 9 and 7 years old. We lived at that time in the United States, and it was our last full year before we moved back to England in August 1985. We took the opportunity to travel a bit and visit new places, including Virginia, Florida and Quebec.

My sister, Kathy, brought Alison and Sarah back home to us - 

the children had stayed with Kathy and Steve in their apartment 

in Washington for 2 days, so Lois and I could spend the weekend 

travelling a little around Maryland.

Alison, Sarah and Lois in Canada (summer 1984)

Lois in Canada

Virginia (autumn 1984), when we four were still

the center of the universe - My goodness, happy days!

18:00 Lois and I eat dinner and spend the rest of the evening listening to the radio, an interesting program about swearing. The program's host is the charming Matthew Sweet.

  

We have not heard this series before. It seems to be about philosophical topics, and revolves around a conversation between Matthew and various university professors, journalists and other experts, as well as a famous female comedian (Jane Bussman). But the locale sounds like a tavern, or possibly a radio studio that has been converted into a temporary tavern - I am not quite sure.

Matthew Sweet, the program's charming host

Jane Bussmann, the famous comedian

Despite the fact that it is only 8pm, we hear a lot of English swear words during the program - my god! What madness !!!

The discussion is lively and funny, even though many of the group's conclusions are quite obvious. The group discuss the history of swearing in the English language. All the earliest swearing revolved round religious words and expressions, because the religious life then permeated society: God, Christ, the devil, hell, etc.. But with the development of a more secular society these sorts of swear words became less powerful, so instead of religious taboos people focused on the toilet and sex - oh dear!!!

The benefits of swearing are discussed: an impression of sincerity - people who often use swear words tell fewer lies, according to studies. Bad language makes us obviously feel better faster if for example we burn ourselves on something hot, possibly boiling water and so on. And swearing is sometimes a good way to bond with a group or social circle.

Bilingual people find swear-words more satisfactory in their first language than in their second language. When I hear this, I am reminded that the Danes have enthusiastically adopted the English language's f-word, although it is a much weaker expression in Danish than in English, which sometimes causes problems. The most common Danish swearing still refers to religious taboo words, especially hell.

We hear the f-word several times during the program. Matthew's experts agree that the f-word can be very effective and powerful, and is unavoidable in certain circumstances. The famous poem by Philip Larkin, is quoted of course:

They f *** you up, your mum and dad.

They may not mean to, but they do.

They fill you with the faults they had

And add some extra, just for you etc...

Jane Bussman, the famous comedian, reiterates her well-known joke about the female patient who begs her doctor over and over to kiss her. He rejects her time after time, and explains that it would be against his professional code of conduct, but she continues to insist. The doctor finally gets very annoyed and insists that he will not kiss her. "I shouldn’t really be f *** ing you", he adds. My god - what a crazy world we live in !!!!

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

03:45 I get up early and do one of my routine Danish vocabulary tests.

08:00 I hurry into the kitchen and make two cups of tea. I take them up to the bedroom and crawl under the covers with Lois. We drink the tea and get up. We eat breakfast.

10:00 My friend, "Magyar" Mike comes and we learn Hungarian for an hour. I hear the latest news about Mike's grandson, Stephen, currently studying at a university in Prague. Mike, and Mary, Mike's wife, will visit Stephen for a week later this month. Next week Mike is travelling to London with his former work colleague, George, to visit the Royal Mint. I tell him that Lois and I visited the Royal Mint in Perth, Australia last year, also the US Mint in Denver in the 1980s, but I'm not sure he is listening - my god !!! Mike is a very nice man, but he is not a good listener - I know that for sure !!!! He tends to only hit the "send" button - I do not think he knows where the "receive" button is on his invisible "control panel". My God!

 flashback to June 2016

Lois and I visit Perth's Royal Mint

US Mint: flashback to 1983. We visit the US Mint in Denver.

11:00 Mike has to go. Lois and I relax with a cup of coffee on the sofa.

12:00 We eat lunch and afterwards I go to bed and take a gigantic afternoon nap.

15:00 I get up and take a little look at the web. I find Morten Ingemann's latest cartoon strip. My God! I get a bit of a shock when I see it - I know that for sure!

The Dane Ingemann is my favorite cartoonist - no doubt about it! He is very interested in ugly, overweight, middle-aged or older people, the kind of people that most artists rarely pay attention to.

I like Ingemann's attitude - he instinctively rejects negative feelings about ageing. He knows that people's best years are most often in the future - in their 80s and 90s. In other words, the best is yet to come.

Everyone knows that older people's memories tends to deteriorate, but Ingemann sees this in a positive light. Today we see an old man, maybe in his 80s, who has applied for a job and has been summoned for interview. The boss tells him that he has read his application and unfortunately he is overqualified. The boss encourages the man to wait and submit a new application when he is a little older - in other words, when he has forgotten some of his qualifications. Go Morten! - you always focus on the positive, which I like !!!

15:45 Lois and I go for a short walk in the neighborhood. Our route: New Barn Lane, Linden Avenue and back again. We walk past my late mother's house, and I notice that the new owners have installed a new satellite dish on the building's front wall. 25 years ago my dad had a SkyTV-dish installed on the house's side wall, but it disappeared many years ago. Time flies!

16:20 We get home and relax with a cup of tea on the sofa.

Søndag den 26. februar 2017 kl 16:30 til mandag den 27. februar 2017 kl 16:29

17:00 Jeg hopper op på min kondicykel og jeg tilbagelægger endnu 6 miles (10km). Jeg tænder for min smartphone og ser på ”1985s bedste sange” på YouTube.

jeg kigger tilbage på 1985s bedste sange, mens jeg cykler

Jeg kan igen ikke modstå fristelsen til at kigge tilbage på 1985 i vores livshistorie – du godeste! Det var et vigtigt år for mig, Lois og vores to døtre Alison og Sarah på henholdsvis 10 og 8 år, fordi vi flyttede tilbage til England efter 3 år i USA. Vi havde fuldstændigt vænnet os til at bo i USA, især pigerne, så derfor var det lidt af et chok at kommer tilbage og køre bil på de meget smallere veje osv og i venstre siden. Pigerne skulle droppe deres amerikanske accenter, for ikke at føle sig udenfor i deres gamle skole for eksempel.

Vi tilbragte et par dage i august i New York, sammen med Kathy, min søster, Steve, Kathys kæreste (senere ægtemand). Vi kom om bord QE2-cruiseskibet i en tordenstorm og nåede til England i strålende solskin, hvilket synes lidt mærkeligt. ”And the Hudson River makes you start to quiver”, som Sinatra sang – du godeste!

  

1985: Alison, vores 10-årige datter i New York

Vi besøger New Yorks Chinatown:

(fra venstre til højre) Lois, Alison, Kathy og Steve

souvenirfoto: vi kommer om bord på QE2-cruiseskibet

Vi siger farvel til USA i en tordenstorm:

(fra venstre til højre – Lois og Alison.

Sarah står skjult bag Alison)

 

Vi ankommer tilbage til England i strålende solskin –

i baggrunden Isle of Wight, og Needles-kalkstensklipperne,

det mest fotograferede udsigtspunkt på øen

”When your little daughter, sees the Solent water, ” som Sinatra ikke sang – du godeste!

Efter jeg er færdig med at cykle, laver jeg lidt mild vægtløftning.

18:00 Lois og jeg spiser aftensmad og bruger resten af aftenen på at lytte til radio, et interessant program, ”Dødsfald af digterne”, der handler om konceptet dødsdømte digter. Programmets værter er de charmerende Michael Symmons Roberts og Paul Farley, to levende (gudskelov!) digter .

Sikke et interessant program, fyldt til bristepunktet med fascinerende anekdoter om berømte digteres liv. Lad os se kendsgerningerne i øjnene: selve digtere er for det meste mere interessante, end deres digte – det ved jeg med sikkerhed!!!

Programmets værter deler digtere i to grupper: de, der er dødsdømte (selvdestruktive bohemer, der dør før sin tid, ofte ved selvmord), og de ikke-dødsdømte, der måske har et almindeligt job og dør af naturlige årsager – alderdom eller sygdom osv). For de dødsdømte er deres liv og deres værker fuldstændigt sammenflettet til hinanden, så de søger altid fare og tager risikoer: rutine og komfort er synonyme med døden af deres kreativitet. De dødsdømte digtere er efter min mening faktisk meget mere kedelige, end andre digtere –  deres udskejelser er så forudsigelige, synes jeg.

De ikke-dødsdømte digtere viser mere originalitet, synes jeg. Stevie Smith (1902-1971) var en nervøs sekretær. Louis MacNiece (1907-1963) arbejdede for BBC radiotv-kanalen, Wallace Stephens (1879-1955), arbejdede for en forsikringsselskab. Philip Larkin (1922-1985) var bibliotekar. Andre ikke-dødsdømte eksempler, der levede rimelig langt liv, indeholder TS Eliot (1888-1965), Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), Rosemary Tonks (1928-2014), Marianne Moore (1887-1972).

Rosemary Tonks, en af de ikke-dødsdømte digtere,

der levede til en moden alderdom

22:00 Vi går i seng – zzzzzzz!!!!

04:00 Jeg står tidligt  op og laver én af mine rutinemæssige danske ordforrådtest.

07:15 Jeg skynder mig ind i køkkenet og laver to kopper te. Jeg tager dem med op i soveværelset og kryber tilbage i sengen til Lois. Vi drikker teen og går i bad. Vi står op og spiser morgenmad.

10:00 Lois skal ud. Hun møder i formiddag sine tidligere arbejdskollegaer, Rose og Sheila, for kaffe-og-kage i M&S-caféen.

Jeg har lidt alenetid, så sætter jeg mig ved min bærebare og sende en email til vores danske gruppes medlemmer. Jeg vedhæfter de næste 15 sider af den danske kriminovelle, som gruppen læser for tiden, samt ordforrådlister.

12:15 Jeg skynder mig ind i køkkenet og laver frokost: suppe, scotch æg, ostemad, agurk og mini-tomater – nam-nam!

13:00 Lois kommer tilbage igen og vi spiser frokost. Bagefter går jeg i seng for at tage mig en kort eftermiddagslur.

14:30 Jeg står op. Lois skal ud. Hun skal kører over til Churchdown, hente Ursula, sin veninde, og  køre hende til sin lægeklinikken. Ursula lider for tiden at blærebetændelse, og hun vil gerne få en recept på antibiotika. Efter aftalen hos lægen, skal Lois køre Ursula til det lokale apotek for at hente pillerne – du godeste! Lois har et hjerte af guld – det har jeg ikke nogen tvivl om!!!!

15:00 Jeg har lidt alenetid og jeg kigger lidt på nettet. Jeg finder Morten Ingemanns seneste tegneseriestribe. Du godeste! Jeg får lidt af et chok, da jeg ser den – det ved jeg med sikkerhed!

Danskeren Ingemann er min yndlingstegner  – ingen tvivl om det! Han interesserer sig meget for grimme, overvægtige, midaldrende eller ældre folk, de slags mennesker, som de fleste tegnere sjældent giver opmærksomhed til.

Han er også meget indsigtsfuld og dybtgående, når det kommer til nutidens  forretningsetikker – jeg må indrømme, at mange succesfulde forretningsmænd er midaldrende og overvægtige, så derfor tilhører 100% Ingemanns naturlige fokusområde.

Det er måske lidt kontroversielt, men jeg synes Ingemann har ret i, at forretningsmænd undertiden tager overhånd, når de rutinemæssigt overflytter alt i deres koners navne. Og det kan føre til tristhed og tragedie. I dagens stribe fortæller Ingemann den triste historie af en forretningsmand, der desværre døde – to af hans tidligere arbejdskollegaer gik på kirkegården for at vise respekt, men de kunne ikke finde hvor han lå. Selvfølgelig var forklaringen, at han lå i sin kones navn, men vi må spørge – er det ikke lidt nidkært? Jeg formoder, at gamle vaner dør langsomt ha ha ha – tilgive den ganske smagløse humor, men det er et seriøst punkt uden tvivl!!!

16:15 Lois er ikke dukket op endnu, så jeg slapper af med en kop te i sofaen.

English translation

17:00 I jump up on my exercise bike and I clock up another 6 miles (10km). I turn on my smartphone and look at "1985s best songs" on YouTube.

I look back at 1985's best songs while cycling

I again cannot resist the temptation to look back at 1985 in the story of our lives - my god! It was an important year for me, Lois and our two daughters Alison and Sarah, 10 and 8 years old respectively, because we moved back to England after 3 years in the United States. We had completely gotten used to living in the USA, especially the girls, so it was a bit of a shock to come back and drive on very narrow roads, etc. and on the left. The girls had to drop their American accents, so as not to feel out of it in their old school for example.

We spent a few days in August in New York, along with Kathy, my sister, Steve, Kathy's boyfriend (later husband). We went on board the QE2 cruise ship in a thunderstorm and reached England in glorious sunshine, which seems a bit odd. "And the Hudson River makes you start to quiver" as Sinatra sang - my god!

1985: Alison, our 10 year old daughter in New York

We visit New York's Chinatown:

(From left to right) Lois, Alison, Kathy and Steve

souvenir photo: we go on board the QE2 cruise ship

We say goodbye to the United States in a thunderstorm:

(From left to right - Lois and Alison.

Sarah is hidden behind Alison)

We arrive back to England in bright sunshine –

in the background the Isle of Wight, and the Needles limestone cliffs,

the most photographed viewpoint on the island"

When your little daughter, sees the Solent water," as Sinatra did not sing - my god!

After I finish cycling, I do a little mild weightlifting.

18:00 Lois and I eat dinner and spend the rest of the evening listening to the radio, an interesting program, "Deaths of the Poets," which is about the concept of the doomed poet. The program's hosts are the charming Michael Symmons Roberts and Paul Farley, two living (thank goodness!) poets.

What an interesting program, filled to the brim with fascinating anecdotes about famous poets' lives. Let's face facts: the poets are mostly more interesting than their poems - I know that for sure !!!

The presenters divide poets into two groups: those who are doomed (self-destructive bohemians who die before their time, often by suicide), and the non-doomed ones (who might have a regular job and die of natural causes - old age or illness, etc. ). For the doomed ones, their lives and their works are completely intertwined with each other, so they are always looking for danger and taking risks: routine and comfort are synonymous with the death of their creativity. The doomed poets in my opinion are actually much more boring than the other poets - their excesses are so predictable, I think.

The non-doomed poets show more originality, in my view. Stevie Smith (1902-1971) was a nervous secretary. Louis MacNiece (1907-1963) worked for the BBC radio-tv channels, Wallace Stephens (1879-1955), worked for an insurance company. Philip Larkin (1922-1985) was a librarian. Other non-doomed examples that lived reasonably long lives include TS Eliot (1888-1965), Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), Rosemary Tonks (1928-2014), and Marianne Moore (1887-1972).

Rosemary Tonks, one of the non-doomed poets,

who lived to a ripe old age

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

04:00 I get up early and do one of my routine Danish vocabulary tests.

07:15 I hurry into the kitchen and make two cups of tea. I take them up to the bedroom and crawl back in bed with Lois. We drink the tea and take a shower. We get up and eat breakfast.

10:00 Lois has to go out. She is meeting her former work colleagues, Rose and Sheila, this morning for coffee-and-cake in the M & S cafe.I have a little alone-time, so I sit down at my laptop and send an email to our Danish group members. I attach the next 15 pages of the Danish crime novel the group are currently reading, plus vocabulary lists.

12:15 I hurry into the kitchen and make lunch: soup, scotch eggs, cheese sandwich, cucumber and mini-tomatoes - yum-yum!

13:00 Lois comes back again and we eat lunch. Afterwards I go to bed and take a short afternoon nap.

14:30 I get up. Lois has to go out. She must drive over to Churchdown, pick up Ursula, her friend, and drive her to her medical clinic. Ursula is suffering from cystitis at the moment, and she would like to get a prescription for antibiotics. After the appointment with the doctor, Lois has to drive Ursula to the local pharmacy to pick up the pills - my god! Lois has a heart of gold - I have no doubts about that !!!!

15:00 I have a little alone time and I take a little look at the net. I find Morten Ingemann's latest cartoon strip. My God! I get a bit of a shock when I see it - I know that for sure!

The Dane Ingemann is my favorite cartoonist - no doubt about it! He is very interested in ugly, overweight, middle-aged or older people, the kind of people that most artists rarely pay attention to.

He is also very insightful and incisive when it comes to today's business ethics - I must admit that many successful business men are middle-aged and overweight, so they belong 100% to Ingemann’s natural focus area.

It is perhaps a little controversial, but I think Ingemann is right in saying that businessmen sometimes get out of hand when they routinely transfer everything to their wives' names. And it can lead to sadness and tragedy. In today's strip Ingemann tells the sad story of a businessman who unfortunately died - two of his former work colleagues went to the cemetery to pay their respects, but they could not find where he was buried. Of course, the explanation was that he was buried under his wife's name, but we must ask - is this not a bit overzealous? I suppose old habits die hard ha ha ha - forgive the rather tasteless humor, but it’s a serious point without a doubt!!!

16:15 Lois has not shown up yet, so I relax with a cup of tea on the sofa.

Lørdag den 25. februar 2017 kl 16:30 til søndag den 26. februar 2017 kl 16:29

17:00 Lois og jeg vælter ud af sengen ved slutningen af vores ekstralang eftermiddagslur. Vi spiser aftensmad og bruger resten af aftenen på at se lidt fjernsyn. Vi ser nogle programmer færdigt, som vi delvist har set i den seneste uge: Ray, en biopicfilm om den amerikanske sanger-sangforfatter og klaverspiller, Ray Charles, også en interessant dokumentarfilm, der handler om den nyeste nationalpark, South Downs.

Lois og jeg har et problem med at glemme hvilke dokumentarfilm vi har set, og hvilke vi ikke har set, fordi mange af dem handler om lignende temaer. Vi prøver at undgå programmer, der registreres som genudsendelser, men vi mellem april og juni 2016 var i Australien, så derfor gik vi glip dengang af en masse dokumentarfilm. Perioden i Australien var vores seneste ”sorte hul”. Der var en tidligere sorte hul, da vi mellem 1982-5 boede i USA, og for mit vedkommende også 1970-71, da jeg boede i Japan.

Nu, hvor vi har vores spritnye Plusnet tv-enhed, kan vi optage en tårnhøj antal programmer, og mere og mere ser vi kun programmets første halvdel – du godeste! Vi bliver sindsygt forvirrede – det har jeg ikke nogen tvivl om !!!

20:00 Vi lytter lidt til radio, en interessant dokumentar, præsenteret af Emily Dicks, hvis engelske farfar var skoledreng i Sankt Petersborg, da den russiske revolution brød ud. Hun besøger byen, huset, hvor hendes farfar boede, skolen, han gik i osv.

Vi hører også uddrag fra et interview fra 1960’erne, hvor Emilys farfar, Henry Dicks, diskuterede begivenhederne med Emilys far. Det er fascinerende at høre stemmen af en englænder, der var vidne til krisen og den værste begivenhed i verdens historie, der forårsagede problemer i 70 år. Du godeste!

Emily Dicks i Rusland

Man har tendens til at glemme, at ingen ved starten af året forventede, at en revolution lige var rundt om hjørnet. Det største problem var kun, at alle var sultne på grund af manglen på fodevarer. Alle var blevet chokeret af mordet på Rasputin af russiske aristokrater i december 1916, en forbrydelse, der ikke var blevet straffet.

Kvinderbevægelsen holdt en demonstration og en strejke en dag sidst i februar, delvis for kvinders rettigheder, men også for ”mere brød” – du godeste!  De overtalte mange mandlige arbejdere også til at slutte sig til strejken. En stor menneskemængde samlede sig i bymidten, råbende på brød, brød, men alle kunne mærke en venlig karneval-stemning. Strejken blev total efter et par dage – ikke nogle busser, og enorme menneskemængder på gaderne, folk af arbejderklassen også middelklassen. Politiet stod bare og kiggede på dem.

Søndag den 26. februar blev nogle hærenheder sendt ind i byen efter ordre fra tsaren. Soldaterne fyrede på menneskemængderne (over hovederne, mistænker jeg) men modvilligt, og den følgende dag var der et oprør af nogle militære enheder, hvilket var vendepunktet. Ifølge Emilys farfar, var der en general stemning af befrielse. Folk ønskede i første omgang om en konstitutionelt monarki, men lidt senere besluttede tsaren at abdicere.

Men to magtcentrummer udviklede sig desværre, ikke bare den midlertidige regering oprettet af parlamentet, men også var der byens ”sovjet”, der umiddelbart blev betragtet som en uhyggelig trussel mod de almindelige borgere, ifølge Emilys farfar.

Men de to magtcentrummer sameksisterede (lidt uroligt!), indtil april, da Lenin ankom i byen med tog fra udlandet og slog sig ned i et palads, som en russiske ballerina engang ejede – hun var flygtet i februar. I september overtog det bolsjevistiske parti styringen af sovjetten. Deres enkle budskab  -  brød og fred, bønderne må eje landet osv, var meget overbevisende. Du godeste! Der var en stemning af vold i gaderne, og mange borgerlige og fremmede personer blev angrebet og dræbt. I oktober startede det bolsjevistiske parti revolutionen mod den midlertidige regering i tsarens tidligere vinterpalads, et voldsomt (delvis militært) angreb, som Emilys farfar var vidne til.

Emilys farfar kaldte dette tidspunkt en triste slutning af håb om udviklingen af det liberale demokrati med almindelig valgret. Folk syntes i begyndelsen, at den bolsjevistiske regering ikke ville være langvarig, men faktisk var det lige starten af en kampagne af terror mod byens almindelige indbyggere, også voldsomme husundersøgelser og plyndring osv. Henry Dicks var vidne til voldsomme husundersøgelse, inklusive plyndring, i huset af den russiske familie, han boede med.

Emilys farfar nåede at forlade landet. Et specielt tog var arrangeret af den britiske ambassade for at transportere Henry og de fleste briter fra byens  såkaldte Finland-banegård væk til Finland. Men den russiske borgerlige krige havde desværre spredt til Finland, og det var der, han var vidne til de mest voldsomme scener  – du  godeste, bare Henrys held!

Sankt Petersborgs såkaldte “Finland Banegård”

Da de britiske flygtninge endelig ankom til Sverige, så landet ud som en paradis, velstående og velordnet. Gudskelov for Sverige!!!

Det er interessant at spekulere om, hvor det primære ansvar ligger for Lenins succesfuld karriere som skurk. Mange var skyldige på én eller anden måde. En tsar, der var for autokratisk – selvom han allerede havde abdiceret, før oktober 1917. Tyskerne, der sendte Lenin tilbage til Rusland præcis for at fremskynde en revolution, der ville  fjerne Rusland fra den første verdenskrig. Hvor overfladisk!!!

Jeg beskylder selve Lenin – kald mig gammeldags hvis du vil ha ha ha. En karismatiske mand, der imidlertid ikke var intelligent nok til at se at kommunismen ville være en katastrofe for Rusland og hele verden, og ville spilde en masse menneskers tid ved at tvinge dem til at modstå den!!!! Kom ikke tilbage, Lenin – du er ikke tilgivet ha ha ha!!!

22:00 Vi går i seng – zzzzzzz!!!!!!

04:00 Jeg står tidligt op og laver én af mine rutinemæssige danske ordforrådtest.

Jeg kigger lidt på nettet, og jeg ser, at Sarah, vores datter i Australien, har sendt mig et charmerende foto af Jessica, sin 3-årige datter, der har tegnet et billede af sin mor på en tavle. Forhåbentligt kan vi skype med Sarah, Francis og tvillingerne senere på dagen.

Jessica - én af vores 2 børnebørn i Australien

07:45 Jeg skynder mig ind i køkkenet og laver to kopper te. Jeg tager dem med op i soveværelset og hopper op i sengen til Lois. Vi drikker teen og står op.

09:00 Vi taler lidt på Skype med Sarah, Francis, Lily og Jessica i Perth i Australien. Det er meget sjovt at snakke med dem om deres liv derovre. Tvillingerne viser os deres seneste kunstværker og de nye balletkjoler, de igår tog på for at deltage i deres nye balletklasse.

Tvillingerne snakker entusiastisk, om hvad de gerne vil gøre sammen med Lois og mig den næste gang, vi flyver derover, hvilket er lidt pinligt – familien vil have os til at besøge dem senere på året, men jeg er bange for, vi ikke har råd til at besøge dem hvert år! Også, de ny direkte flyveture starter ikke indtil foråret 2018 – uha!

Lily Sarah og Jessica

en træt Lily, og Sarah

Lily og Jessica

Sarah tager sin bærebare ud i haven i et par minutter, så vi kan høre lyde fra Adeles koncert – den populære engelske sangerinde synger i dag i én eller anden enorme arena midt i Perth.

11:00 Jeg går ud i baghaven og luger lidt i grøntsaghaven – for anden gang i år. Der er kun meget små ukrudt der for tiden, men jeg må lægge et stort indsats i år i at forhindre haven i at blive til en jungle igen – uha!

12:00 Vi spiser frokost og bagefter skal Lois ud. Hun ønsker at deltage i en gudstjeneste i eftermiddag i Tewkesbury. Hun kører med Maggie, sin veninde.

Jeg har lidt alenetid, og sætter mig ved computeren. Jeg fortsætter med at udarbejde ordforrådlister til de næste 12 sider af den danske kriminovelle, vores danske grupper er begyndt at læse (pp 18-29), og jeg printer ordforrådlister i bunden af siden, de henviser til. Bagefter udarbejder jeg en ordforrådlist over de ca.50 nye ord, jeg vil have gruppens medlemmer til at lære udenad før gruppens næste møde (den 9. marts), når jeg vil giver dem en ”sjov” test – jeg er så krævende ha ha ha!!!!

På den 17. side bliver novellens ligtal til 4 – hurra! Farvel Jakob Mattesen! Du er morderens seneste offer – det har jeg ikke nogen tvivl om !!!!

15:00 Jeg går i seng for at tage mig en kort lur. Vores eftermiddagslur var så lange i går (4 timer- du godeste!!!!), at jeg kvier mig ved at sove så længe i dag. Pokkers! Zzzzzzzzz!!!!!

15:30 Lois kommer tilbage og jeg vælter ud af sengen. Vi slapper af med en kop te i sofaen.

English translation

17:00 Lois and I tumble out of bed at the end of our extra long afternoon nap. We eat dinner and spend the rest of the evening watching TV. We see some programs to the end that we have seen part of in the past week: Ray, a biopic about the American singer-song writer and piano player, Ray Charles, also an interesting documentary about the newest national park, South Downs.

Lois and I have a problem with forgetting what documentaries we have seen and what we have not seen, because many of them are about similar themes. We try to avoid programs that are registered as reruns, but between April and June 2016 we were in Australia, so at that time we missed a lot of documentaries. The period in Australia was our latest "black hole". There was an earlier black hole, when we lived in the United States between 1982-5, and in my case also 1970-71, when I lived in Japan.

Now that we have our brand new Plusnet TV unit, we can record a staggering number of programs, and more and more we see only a program's first half - my god! We are becoming insanely confused - I have no doubts about that !!!

20:00 We listen a little to the radio, an interesting documentary presented by Emily Dicks, whose English grandfather was a schoolboy in St Petersburg when the Russian Revolution broke out. Emily visits the city, and the house where her grandfather lived, the school he went to, etc.

We also hear excerpts from an interview from the 1960s, when Emily's grandfather, Henry Dicks, discussed the events with Emily's father. It is fascinating to hear the voice of an Englishman who witnessed the crisis and what was the worst event in the history of the world, one that caused problems for 70 years. My God!

One tends to forget that no one at the beginning of the year expected that a revolution was just around the corner. The biggest problem was just that everyone was hungry for lack of food. Everybody had been shocked by the murder of Rasputin by Russian aristocrats in December 1916, a crime that had not been punished.

The Women's Movement held a demonstration and a strike one day in late February 1917, partly for women's rights, but also for "more bread" - my god! They persuaded many male workers also to join the strike. A large crowd gathered in the city center, shouting for bread, bread, but everybody could sense a friendly carnival atmosphere. The strike was total after a few days - no buses, and huge crowds on the streets, people from the working class also the middle class. The police just stood and looked at them.

On Sunday, February 26, some army units were sent into the city by order of the tsar. The soldiers fired on the crowds (over their heads, I suspect) but reluctantly, and the following day there was a rebellion by some military units, which was the turning point. According to Emily's grandfather, there was a general mood of liberation. People wanted a constitutional monarchy in the first place, but later the tsar decided to abdicate.

But two centers of power developed unfortunately, not just the provisional government created by the parliament, but also the city's "soviet", which was immediately seen as a sinister threat to ordinary citizens, according to Emily's grandfather.

These two centers of power coexisted (a little uneasily!) until April, when Lenin arrived in town by train from abroad and settled down in a palace a Russian ballerina had once owned - she fled in February. In September the Bolshevik party took over control of the soviet. Their simple message - bread and peace, peasants must own the land, etc., was very persuasive. My God! There was an atmosphere of violence in the streets, and many bourgeois people and foreigners were attacked and killed. In October the Bolshevik party started the revolution against the provisional government in the Tsar's former Winter Palace, a violent (partial military) attack that Emily's grandfather witnessed.

Emily's grandfather called this time a sad end of hopes for the development of liberal democracy with universal suffrage. People thought at the beginning that the Bolshevik government would not be long-lasting, but actually it was just the beginning of a campaign of terror against the city's general population, with violent house searches and looting etc. Henry Dicks witnessed the violent searching of the house, including looting, of the Russian family, he lived with.

Emily's grandfather managed to leave the country. A special train was arranged by the British Embassy to carry Henry and most Britons from the city's so-called Finland Station away to Finland. But the Russian civil wars had unfortunately spread to Finland, and it was there that he witnessed the most violent scenes of all - my goodness, just Henry's luck!

St Petersburg’s  so-called “Finland Station”

When the British refugees finally arrived in Sweden, the country seemed like a paradise, prosperous and orderly. Thank God for Sweden !!!

It is interesting to speculate about where the primary responsibility lies for Lenin's successful career as a villain. Many were guilty in one way or another. A tsar who was too autocratic - even though he had already abdicated before October 1917. The Germans, who sent Lenin back to Russia just to accelerate a revolution that would remove Russia from the First World War. How shallow !!!

I blame Lenin himself - call me old-fashioned if you will. A charismatic man, who however was not intelligent enough to see that communism would be a disaster for Russia and the world, and would waste a lot of people's time by forcing them to resist it !!!! Do not come back, Lenin - you are not forgiven ha ha ha!!!!

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

04:00 I get up early and do one of my routine Danish vocabulary tests.

I take a little look at the web and I see that Sarah, our daughter in Australia, has sent me a charming photo of Jessica, her 3-year-old daughter, who has drawn a picture of her mother on a blackboard. Hopefully we can skype with Sarah, Francis and the twins later today.

Jessica - one of our twin granddaughters in Australia

07:45 I hurry into the kitchen and make two cups of tea. I take them up to the bedroom and hop into bed with Lois. We drink the tea and get up.

9:00 We speak a little on Skype with Sarah, Francis, Lily and Jessica in Perth Australia. It is a lot of fun to talk to them about their lives over there. The twins show us their latest artwork and the new ballet dresses they put on yesterday to take part in their new ballet class.

The twins are enthusiastic about what they want to do with Lois and me the next time we fly over there, which is a little embarrassing - the family want us to visit them later this year, but I'm afraid we cannot afford to visit them every year! Also, the new direct flights do not start until spring 2018 - oh dear!

Lily Sarah and Jessica

a tired Lily, and Sarah

Lily and Jessica

Sarah takes her laptop out into the garden for a few minutes so we can hear the sounds of Adele's concert - the popular British singer is singing today in some huge arena in the middle of Perth.

11:00 I go out in the backyard and weed a bit in the vegetable garden - for the second time this year. There are only very small weeds currently, but I must put a big effort in this year to prevent the garden from turning into a jungle again - oh dear!

12:00 We eat lunch and afterwards Lois has to go out. She wants to attend a church service this afternoon in Tewkesbury. She is riding with Maggie, her friend.

I have a little alone time, and sit down at the computer. I continue to draw up vocabulary lists for the next 12 pages of the Danish crime novel our Danish groups are starting to read (pp 18-29), and I print vocabulary lists at the bottom of the page they refer to. Afterwards I prepare a vocabulary list of about 50 new words that I want group members to memorize before the group's next meeting (March 9), when I will give them a "fun" test - I'm so demanding ha ha ha !!!!

On the 17th page the novel's body-count becomes 4 - hurrah! Goodbye Jacob Mattesen! You are the killer's latest victim - I have no doubts about that !!!!

15:00 I go to bed and take a short nap. Our afternoon nap was so long yesterday (4 hours my god !!!!) that I shrink from sleeping so long today. Damn! Zzzzzzzzz !!!!!

15:30 Lois comes back and I tumble out of bed. We relax with a cup of tea on the sofa.