Søndag den 5. november 2017

05:30 Jeg står tidligt op. I dag er en stor dag for Lois og mig. Hun planlægger at køre til Tewkesbury for at deltage i sin kirkes to gudstjenester, den første i formiddag og den anden i eftermiddag. Dette vil være hendes første store køreoplevelse siden sin nylige øjenoperation for grå stær og ordineringen af sine nye briller.

Hun vinder sin frihed tilbage i dag, fordi hun ikke længere er afhængig af mig for at tage her og der. Også for mit vedkommende har jeg udsigten til, at jeg ikke blive nødt til at køre bil så meget, som før. Jeg kommer til at have meget mere alenetid, hvilket betyder, at jeg kan klare en masse opgaver på min gøremålsliste – hurra!

08:00 Jeg hopper tilbage op i sengen til Lois og vi drikker vores morgenté. Vi venter for tiden på et telefonkald fra vores venner, Mari-Ann og Alf, der ankom tilbage fra New Zealand i fredags. Da de kom hjem, fandt de ud af, at de ikke kunne starte deres bil, der i løbet af de seneste måned er blevet parkeret foran deres hus. Der er et problem med bilens elektroniske tænding, lader det til. Det kan være, at de vil bede Lois om at køre dem over til Tewkesbury i dag, og køre dem hjem efter den anden gudstjeneste.

09:00 Mari-Ann ringer til Lois. Hun og Alf har besluttet at tage med tog til Tewkesbury.

10:00 Vi snakker lidt på whatsapp med Sarah, vores datter i Perth, Australien, og med Francis, Sarahs mand, og deres 4-årige tvillinger, Lily og Jessie. Sarah siger, de overvejer at flytte til Mullaloo på kysten, fordi de tror de har fundet en lokale børnehave, der har plads til tvillingerne, når de starter på deltid næste februar.

Lily (til venstre) og Jessie, vores 4-årige børnebørn i Perth, Australien:

de er opsatte på at spise de lækre kopkager, de lige har lavet – nam nam!

den børnehave i Mullaloo, der har plads til tvillingerne

tilbageblik til maj 2016 – Lois og jeg besøger Mullaloo-stranden

10:30 Mari-Ann ringer til Lois igen. Hun og Alf er på banegården, men deres tog er blevet aflyst. Hun beder Lois om at køre forbi, hente dem og køre dem til Tewkesbury. Stakkels Lois – en sand ilddåb for hende, med hendes første lang køreoplevelse. Yikes!

11:00 Jeg har lidt alenetid, og jeg går i gang med at læse de næste 30 vers af ”Havamal”, et oldnorsk digt, der blev skrevet af Odin, den berømte nordiske gud, fordi Scillas U3A oldnorsk gruppe holder dens næste møde på onsdag kl 14 i byens bibliotek.

Selve Odin fik faktisk nogle dårlige nyheder tidligere på året - han ramte overskrifterne igen (for første gang siden 1654), da det blev rapporteret af theonion.com, den indflydelsesrige amerikanske nyhedskilde, at den engang populære nordiske gud nu kun havde 4 tilbedere tilbage.

Odin sagde i en meddelelse, at hans kults tilbagegang startede i 1654, da tapper død gled ud af mode. Han håbede imidlertid, at en kommende Playboy særnummer fokuserende på Valhallas piger, ville øge medlemskabet og holde liv i kulten.

Jeg har ikke selv set særnummeret endnu – jeg har bestilt det naturligvis. Jeg glæder mig til at se, om redaktøren har besluttet at fremvise nogle af de valkyrier, alle penneveninder, som jeg foreslog i et brev til redaktøren. Disse valkyrier er godt trætte af deres jobs som valkyrier, hvor de skal vælge hvilke krigere er tilladt at dø i slag, og hvilke er tilladt at leve videre, et ansvar, der i starten var udfordrende, men nu er blevt for rutinemæssigt.

Kvinderne er nu blevet meget ivrige efter, at få deres gennembrud som Playboy-modeller, og de har lovet at vise magasinets redaktør ”en ny fortolkning af Wagners berømte titel, Valkyrieridtet”. Du godeste – sikke en skør verden vi lever i !!!

mine valkyrier-penneveninder i Island, som jeg anbefalede

til Playboys nuværende redaktør. Her laver de kyssemund til redaktøren.

Nogle af dem er godt trætte af deres jobs som valkyrier,

og er meget ivrige efter, at få deres gennembrud som Playboy-modeler. 

Herlev Concert Band spiller Wagners Valkyrieridt - kendt fra filmen Dommedag Nu.

Koncerten fandt sted i november 2010 i Glyptotekets festsal, København.
Mine valkyrier har tilbudt at viser Playboys redaktør en ny
fortolkning af ordet "Valkyrieridt" - du godeste, sikke en skør verden vi lever i !!!

Jeg læser vers 74-96 af Havamal, Odins store digt. Der er bunkevis af nyttige oplysninger i digtet. I sær forklarer han, præcis hvad forskellige ting og mennesker er nyttige til, for eksempel, et skib er nyttig til en hurtig rejse, et skjold er nyttig til beskyttelse, en sværd er nyttig til at slå mennesker med, og en pige er nyttig til at kysse med. Godt at vide, Odin ha ha ha!

Odins oprindelige oldnorske tekst (i sort), med mine notater (i rød).

12:00 Jeg går op på soveværelset og går i gang med at rydde op i min garderobe. Jeg fylder 5 poser med tøj, som jeg ikke længere har brug for, herunder ”nostalgiske” t-shirts, der minder mig om, byer og lande, vi i løbet af vores lange liv har besøgt. Jeg mener det alvorligt nu!!!!

Jeg er meget ivrig efter at downsize – for et par dage siden donerede jeg 50 af mine bøger til det lokale Røde Kors genbrugsbutik i Leckhampton. Vi er to gamle krager, på 71 år, og dette hus og denne have er langt for store. Men kan jeg overtale Lois til at gøre noget lignende? – det er juryen stadig ude om. Jeg mistænker, at vi begge vil blive boende her, indtil én af os dør – yikes!!!!!

13:30 Jeg spiser frokost og går i seng for at tage mig en kort lur. Jeg står op kl 15.

16:00 Lois kommer tilbage fra kirken. Hun har bestået sin ”solo køreprøve” med glans.

18:00 Vi spiser aftensmad og lytter lidt til radio, et interessant program, der handler om den berømte engelske forfatter, George Orwell. En bronze statue af ham blev afsløret denne uge i BBCs hovedkontor i London.

Programmet inkluderer en masse interessante interviews med mennesker der kendte Orwell. Forfatteren var en af mine store helte, da jeg var teenager og studerende, uden at jeg nødvendigvis var enig med alt, han gjorde og sagde: den overklassedreng, der startede med at foragte lavere middelklasseattituder og endte med at gøre sig til talsmand for dem.

George Orwell, den overklassedreng, der startede med

at foragte engelske lavere middelklasse attituder, men endte med

at gøre sig til talsmand for dem.

Jeg læste ’Kammerat Napoleon’ og ’1984’ på højskole, og læste hans tidligere romaner, da jeg var studerende. Kammerat Napoleon er en allegorie af den russiske revolution, hvor dyrene overtager drivelsen af en gård fra dens nådesløse ejer (Jones), men ender ud med at blive mere nådesløse, end selve Jones. Og 1984, der skildrer mareridtet af totalitarismen.

Orwell var alvorligt syg, da han skrev Kammerat Napoleon og 1984, og da jeg i aften hører dette radioprogram, bliver jeg klar over, hvorfor begge romaner var så sparsomme og manglende på uddybning og ”overflødig” farve. Orwell vidste godt, at han var en døende mand, og han skrev bare hvad han havde styrken til at skrive. Han var helt sikker på, at han kunne gøre en forskel ved at skrive disse 2 bøger, og gøre den vestlige verden opmærksom på truslen udgjort af totalitarismen. Jeg synes, han må have gjort den der forskel, fordi begge bøger er kendte verden over, og mange af hans udtryk, som for eksempel ”Storbror”, er kendt verden over også.

Lois og jeg tænker på ham, og vi løfter vores glas og skåler for ham, hver gang vi spiser frokost på Royal William pubben i Cranham, en lille landsby, der ligger lige udenfor Cheltenham. Orwell tilbragte tid i 1940’erne på det lokale sanatorium i Cranham.

Hil dig, George! Du holdt os ud af en masse forfærdlige ting!

22:00 Vi går i seng – zzzzzz!!!!!

English translation

05:30 I get up early. Today is a big day for Lois and me. Lois plans to drive to Tewkesbury to attend her church's two services, the first one this morning and the second this afternoon. This will be her first major driving experience since her recent eye surgery for cataracts and the prescribing of her new glasses.

She wins her freedom back today because she is no longer dependent on me to go here and there. Also, for my part, I have the prospect of not having to drive as much as before. I am going to have much more alone-time, which means I can polish off a lot of tasks on my to-do list - hurrah!

08:00 I jump back into bed with Lois and we drink our morning tea. We are currently waiting for a phone call from our friends, Mari-Ann and Alf, who arrived back from New Zealand on Friday. When they came home, they found out that they could not start their car, which had been parked in front of their house over the past month. There is a fault with the electronic ignition apparently. It may be that they will ask Lois to drive them over to Tewkesbury today and drive them home after the second church service.

9:00 Mari-Ann calls Lois. She and Alf have decided to take a train to Tewkesbury.

10:00 We talk on whatsapp with Sarah, our daughter in Perth, Australia, and with Francis, Sarah's husband, and their 4-year-old twins, Lily and Jessie. Sarah says they are considering moving to Mullaloo on the coast because they think they have found a local kindergarten that has space for the twins when they start part-time next February.

 Lily (left) and Jessie, our 4 year old grandchildren in Perth, Australia:

They are keen to eat the delicious cupcakes they have just made - yum yum!

The kindergarten in Mullaloo which has space for the twins

Flashback to May 2016 - Lois and I visit Mullaloo Beach

10:30 Mari-Ann calls Lois again. She and Alf are at the train station, but their train has been canceled. She asks Lois to drive by, pick them up and drive them to Tewkesbury. Poor Lois - a true baptism of fire for her, with her first long driving experience. Yikes!

11:00 I have a little bit of alone time and I make a start with reading the next 30 verses of Havamal, an Old Norse poem written by Odin, the famous Norse god, because Scilla's U3A Old Norse group is holding its next meeting on Wednesday at 2pm in the town library.

Odin himself actually got some bad news earlier this year - he hit the headlines again (for the first time since 1654) when it was reported by theonion.com, the influential American news source, that the once-popular Norse god now had only 4 worshippers left.

Odin said in a statement that the decline of his cult began in 1654, when valiant death fell out of fashion. However, he was hoping that an upcoming Playboy special issue focusing on Valhalla girls would increase membership and keep the cult alive.

I have not even seen the special issue yet - I have ordered it of course. I am looking forward to seeing if the editor has decided to feature some of the valkyries (all pen-friends of mine) whom I recommended in a letter to the editor. These women are heartily sick of their jobs as valkyries, where they have to choose which warriors are allowed to die in battle and which are allowed to carry on living, a responsibility that was initially challenging but has now become too routine.

The women have now become very keen to make their breakthroughs as Playboy models, and they have promised to show the magazine's editor "a new interpretation of Wagner's famous title, the Ride of the Valkyries." My god - what a crazy world we live in !!!

My valkyrie penfriends in Iceland, whom I recommended

to Playboy's current editor. Here they are 'making kissy-mouth' to the editor.

Some of them are heartily fed up with their jobs as valkyries,

and are very keen to get their breakthroughs as Playboy models.

The Herlev Concert Band plays Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries - 

famous from the movie Doomsday Now. The concert took place 

in November 2010 in the Glyptotek's festival hall, Copenhagen.
My Valkyries have offered to show Playboy's editor a new
interpretation of the phrase "Ride of the Valkyries" -
my god what a crazy world we live in !!!!

I read verses 74-96 of Havamal, Odin's great poem. There is a bunch of useful information in the poem. In particular, he explains exactly what different things and different people can be used for: for example, a ship is useful for a speedy journey, a shield is useful for protection, a sword is useful for hitting people with and a girl is useful for kissing with. Good to know, Odin ha ha ha!

Odin's original Old Norse text (in black), with my notes in red.

12:00 I go up to the bedroom and start clearing up in my wardrobe. I fill 5 bags with clothes that I no longer need, including "nostalgic" t-shirts that remind me of the cities and countries we have visited during our long life. I mean business now !!!!

I am very eager to downsize - a few days ago I donated 50 of my books to the local Red Cross recycling store in Leckhampton. We are two old crows, 71 years of age, and this house and this garden are far too big for us. But can I persuade Lois to do something similar?  The jury is still out on that one. I suspect we are going to stay here until one of us dies - yikes !!!!!

13:30 I eat lunch and go to bed for a short nap. I get up at 3pm.

16:00 Lois comes back from the church. She has passed her "solo driving test" with flying colours.

18:00 We have dinner and listen to the radio a little - an interesting program about the famous English author George Orwell. A bronze statue of him was unveiled this week at the BBC headquarters in London.

George Orwell 

The program includes a lot of interesting interviews with people who knew Orwell. He was one of my great heroes when I was a teenager and student without my necessarily agreeing with everything he did or said: he was the upper-class boy who started out by despising lower middle class attitudes and who ended up by becoming a champion of them.

George Orwell, the upper-class boy who started out by

despising English lower middle class attitudes but who ended up by becoming a

spokesman for them.

I read 'Animal Farm' and '1984' at high school, and I read his earlier novels when I was a student. Animal Farm is an allegory of the Russian Revolution, where the animals take over the running of a farm from its merciless owner (Jones), but end up by becoming more merciless than Jones himself. And 1984, which depicts the nightmare of totalitarianism.

Orwell was seriously ill when he wrote 'Animal Farm' and '1984', and when I hear this radio programme tonight, I realise why both novels were so sparse and lacking in elaboration and "superfluous" color. Orwell knew that he was a dying man, and he just wrote what he had the strength to write. 

He was quite sure he could make a difference by writing these 2 books and making the Western world aware of the threat posed by totalitarianism. I think he must have made that difference, because both books are famous worldwide and many of his phrases, such as "Big Brother", are known worldwide as well.

Lois and I think of him and we raise our glass to him every time we have lunch at the Royal William pub in Cranham, a small village just outside Cheltenham. Orwell spent time in the 1940s at the local sanatorium in Cranham.

Hail to thee, George! You kept us out of a lot of terrible things!

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