08:00 Lois and I tumble out of the shower cubicle. After
breakfast, I sit down with the computer and work out a Hungarian vocabulary
test, which I want my friend "Magyar" Mike to take this morning. He is
coming at 10am to take part in our weekly "Hungarian lesson".
10:00 Mike calls at the door and we study Hungarian for
an hour.
Mike has aged a lot over the past 12-24 months and he is
just a shadow of his former self. His voice is weak and he only moves about with
difficulty.
He has also become a bit of a nervous driver, and to make
matters worse, there was an unfortunate incident yesterday in his hometown of
Nailsworth. Mike parked his car on the street to go shopping and when he got
back to the car he found that there was a large dent in the side of the car but
no note or other communication had been stuck on the windscreen. Now he has to
contact his insurance company and all that crap.
Poor Mike !!!!!
Flashback to 1994:
"Magyar" Mike in happier times -
in Hungary with our Hungarian friend Ibolya
We read a few pages of our Hungarian textbook, Jerry
Payne's "Colloquial Hungarian" - a good textbook, but slightly out of
date: the book was first published in 1987, two years before the fall of the
Berlin Wall.
There are traces and echoes of the vanished communist
system in the book, for example, the use of the word "comrade" as a
form of address, though Payne admitted that the use of the word was already in
decline.
an excerpt from Payne's textbook, and very
nice to
see Maggie Thatcher getting a name check, I have
to say!
Come back, Maggie, all is forgiven, and this
time I mean it ha ha ha !!
Later in the morning, I discuss this politically-charged
form of address - "comrade" - with Lois, and we wonder if there have ever
been such expressions in other countries and other times. We can only think of
the French Revolution, where revolutionary activists addressed each other as "citoyen"
(citizen). There were no such titles used between revolutionary activists
either in the English Civil War or in the American War of Independence (which
was a kind of civil war). Or at least that’s what we think, but we're not completely
sure: the jury is still out on that one.
Aux armes, citoyens!
French revolutionaries called each other "Citizen"
11:00 Mike has to leave. Lois and I relax with a cup of
coffee on the couch.
Afterwards, I jump up on my fitness bike and cycle 6
miles. I had again planned to follow up my bike workout today with a little
light weight training using my shiny new instruction book, but I decide to
continue reading the book instead, which is less exhausting. It also makes
sense to read all about the exercises and absorb all the health warnings,
death threats, etc. before I try it all out for real. That’s my excuse anyway.
I only have one set of regular dumbbells, which you lift
one in each hand, but many of the exercises in the book involve ankle weights, which I don't have. Damn! I need to do some more research with the book before I
begin my weight training seriously – that’s something I know for sure.
12:30 Lois and I have lunch and afterwards I go to bed and
take a gigantic afternoon nap. I get up at 3 pm and we relax with a cup of tea
and a slice of bread with homemade greengage jam - yum yum!
16:00 I sit down at the dining table and read another
chapter of Njal's saga, written in the 13th century in Iceland, although the
saga itself and the events in it are much older. Scilla's U3A Old Norse group is holding its regular fortnightly
meeting here tomorrow (Wednesday) at 2:30 pm, and this saga is the group's current
project.
It has begun to seem inevitable now, that one or other of Gunnar's
many enemies will finally get to kill him - almost all of the people in Iceland now seem to be planning to kill him, to put it mildly. And Njal, Gunnar's best
friend, is now advising him never to leave home without taking along several
members of his family circle as "protection" - yikes!
Poor Gunnar !!!!!!
Gunnar (right) in happier times, before all the death threats
and subpoenas started coming in, seen here
and subpoenas started coming in, seen here
In Chapter 61, which I read yesterday, a group of men led by Sigurd and Starkaður have decided to ambush Gunnar, now that they’ve seen Gunnar is out on a
trip with only 2 companions. But Gunnar has such a fearful reputation that they
plan to have at least 30 of their associates joining in with their ambush. If there are fewer than
30, they believe, the attack is almost bound to fail, they suspect.
My god, what a man Gunnar must be, if, to play it safe,
his enemies need to have 30 men along, even with the element of surprise, just to
attack and kill both him and his 2 sons also!
a cheap souvenir Gunnar mug
Today I read chapter 62, where we find Gunnar and his
sons indeed travelling home from a place called "Tongue". One of Gunnar's
few friends, Asgrim, who lives in Tongue, had invited Gunnar and his sons to a
party, but now the party is over and the three men, perhaps a little drunk, have
to travel back home across enemy territory.
Gunnar however feels a little sleepy during the journey and
he asks his sons if it's okay if he lies down and takes a short afternoon nap.
This is a form of behaviour I can easily relate to - no doubt about that. I
often feel sleepy after a meal or (as in Gunnar’s case) after a big feast, especially if it's one of Asgrim's.
Gunnar’s sons,
Kolskegg and Hjort watch him as he sleeps, and they see that he is strangely
restless, and they wonder if he is dreaming. Hjort wants to wake his father,
but Kolskegg, Hjort's brother, advises against this - he wants his father to
continue to sleep and enjoy his dream - maybe he is doing something nice in it.
When Gunnar wakes up, he seems a little confused and he
starts to gabble like crazy. That too, I can relate to. Lois tells me I have a
tendency to gabble like crazy, and meaninglessly, sometimes if I wake up suddenly
after a dream. And other times, too, she says.
17:30 We have dinner, a little earlier than usual,
because afterwards Lois has to go out - she wants to attend her sect's weekly Bible
seminar, taking place tonight in Brockworth library.
I have some alone time. Suddenly, I remember that the the
borough council’s fortnightly collection of waste and garden waste will be
happening tomorrow at 7 am, and there is almost nothing in either of our
wheelie- bins. Damn! I scramble around the garden collecting all the garbage
and garden waste I can find and stuffing it in the containers before pushing them both
out onto the pavement.
20:00 I spend the rest of the evening watching some
television, but at first it is difficult to find an interesting programme as I
browse through the Radio Times magazine, I have to say. Eventually I decide to
try out a Channel 5 documentary series about the Tower of London.
It seems incredible, but tonight's episode is the 13th
hour-long episode of this Channel 5 series, now into its second season, but as soon as I watch the first 5
minutes, I understand why it's taking so long. The pace of the program is incredibly slow, as in so many Channel 5 documentaries, with plenty of padding and fillers: but there are
also some conversations between the Yeoman Warders (or "Beefeaters") and the tourists, for
example, which at least is entertaining.
We see these charming young students
from Houston, Texas
Occasionally, however, we see a few interesting
historical documents or works of art, thank goodness: objects so valuable from
a historical point of view that they are kept under protective cover of some
kind, and only dug out every 5 years or so, just to check on their condition.
My favourite exhibit tonight is the will of King Edward VI. Edward
was the son and male heir that Henry VIII worked so hard to get by kick-starting the English
Protestant Reformation and beheading so
many of his queens.
Edward was brought up as a Protestant, but unfortunately he became
terminally ill as a teenager and was close to death. The problem was that his
legal heir was his elder half-sister Mary, a dyed-in-the-wool Catholic.
The poor, dying Edward was then manipulated by the
country's leading Protestants and persuaded to write a will in which he named
his cousin, the Protestant Lady Jane Grey as his heir instead of the catholic Mary. However, the
plan did not come to anything after Edward's death, and Mary inherited the
throne in 1554.
It is interesting to see tonight Edward's will, written
in his slightly childish handwriting. Also quite touching, to imagine the scene
where the sick young 15-year-old struggled to write the document under the
direction of his creepy guardian, the Duke of Northumberland.
King Edward IV's will, written in his somewhat
childish handwriting
Poor Edward !!!!
22:00 Lois comes back from Brockworth and we relax a
little on the couch. Afterwards, I go to bed, but Lois needs to wind down a bit
after tonight's stimulating Bible seminar. She hops up into bed with me at 11pm
or so. Zzzzzzzzzzzz !!!!
Danish
translation: tirsdag den 1. oktober 2019
08:00 Lois og
jeg vælter ud af brusekabinen. Efter morgenmad sætter jeg mig med computeren og
udfærdiger en ungarsk ordforrådtest, som jeg vil have min ven ”Magyar” Mike til
at tage i formiddag. Hun kommer kl 10 for at deltage i vores ugentlige
”ungarske time”.
10:00 Mike
ringer på døren og vi studerer ungarsk i en time.
Mike har meget
ældes de seneste 12-24 måneder, og han er bare en skygge af sit tidligere jeg.
Hans stemme er svag og han bevæger sig kun med besvær.
Han er oven i
købet blevet lidt af en nervøs chauffør, og for at gøre tingene værre, var der
en ulykkelig hændelse i går i sin hjembyen Nailsworth. Mike parkerede sin bil
på gaden for at gå på indkøb og da han kom tilbage til bilen, fandt han at der
var en stor bule i siden, men ingen seddel var blevet stukket til forruden. Nu
skal han kontakte sit forsikringsselskab og alt det der lort.
Stakkels Mike !!!!!
tilbageblik til 1994: ”Magyar” Mike i lykkeligere tider –
i
Ungarn med vores ungarske ven Ibolya
Vi læser nogle sider af vores ungarske lærebog, Jerry Paynes ”Colloquial
Hungarian” – en god lærebog, men lidt uddateret: bogen blev først udgavet i
1987, to år før Berlin-murens fald.
Der er spor og ekkorer af den forsvundne kommunistiske system i bogen, for
eksempel, brugen af ordet "kammerat" som en form for henvendelse,
selvom Payne indrømmede at brugen af ordet allerede var i tilbagegang.
et
uddrag fra Paynes lærebog, og nagyon rart at
se
Maggie Thatcher får en navncheck – det må jeg nok sige!
Kom
tilbage, Maggie, alt er tilgivet, og denne gang mener jeg det ha ha ha!!
Senere på
formiddagen diskuterer jeg denne politisk-belastede form for henvendelse –
”kammerat” - lidt med Lois, og vi spekulerer på om der har været sådanne udtryk
i andre lande og andre tider. Vi kan bare tænke på den franske revolution, hvor
revolutionære aktivister henvendte hinanden som ”citoyen” (borger). Der var
ikke sådanne titler brugt mellem revolutionære aktivister enten i den engelske borgerkrig eller i den
amerikanske uafhængighedskrig (som var en slags borgerkrig). Eller det tror vi
i hvert fald, men det er vi ikke helt sikre på: juryen er stadig ude om det.
Aux
armes, citoyens!
11:00 Mike
skal af sted. Lois og jeg slapper af med en kop kaffe i sofaen.
Bagefter
hopper jeg op på min kondicykel, og cykler 6 miles. Jeg havde planlagt at følge
min cykeltræning op med lidt let vægttræning ved hjælp af min spritnye
instruktionsbog, men jeg beslutter at fortsætte med at læse bogen i stedet for,
hvilket er mindre udmattende. Også giver det mening, at læse lidt om øvelserne
og læse om helbredsadvarsler, dødstrusler osv, før jeg afprøver det hele. Det
der er min undskyldning i hvert fald.
Jeg har kun et
sæt almindelige håndvægte, som man løfter med hænderne, men mange af øvelserne i bogen involverer ankelvægte,
som jeg ikke har. Pokkers! Jeg skal lidt mere forskning med bogen, før jeg
begynder på min vægttræninge – det ved jeg med sikkerhed.
12:30 Lois og
jeg spiser frokost og bagefter går jeg i seng for at tage en gigantisk
eftermiddagslur. Jeg står op kl 15 og vi slapper af med en kop te og et stykke
brød med hjemmelavet reineclaude marmelade – yum yum!
16:00 Jeg sætter mig ved
spisebordet og læse endnu et kapitel af Njals saga, skrevet i det 13.
århundrede i Island, selvom selve sagaen og begivenhederne derinde er meget meget
ældre.
Scillas U3A oldnordiske gruppe holder sit regelmæssige fjortendagsmøde på
onsdag kl 14:30 hos os og denne saga er gruppens nuværende projekt.
Det er blevet
begyndt at virke uundgåeligt nu, at det snart vil lykkes én eller anden af
Gunnars mange fjender endelig at dræbe ham – det virker næsten, at alle de
mennesker i Island planlægger at slå ham ihjel, for at sige mildt. Og Njal,
Gunnars bedste ven, råder ham ikke til at rejse hjemmefra, uden at han tage
flere medlemmer af sin omgangskreds med, som ”beskyttelse”– yikes!
Stakkels
Gunnar !!!!!!
Gunnar,
set her i lykkeligere tider,
før
dødtruslerne startede at strømme ind
Nu, i kapitel
61, som jeg læst i går, har en gruppe mænd, ledt af Sigurd og Starkaður,
besluttet at angribe Gunnar fra baghold, nu hvor Gunnar har kun 2 kammerater
med sig. Men Gunnar har sådan en frygtelig omdømme, at de planlægger at 30 af
deres medlemmer af deres omgangskreds kommer med i bagholdet. Mindre end 30,
tror de, og angrebet skal mislykkes. mistænker de.
Du godeste,
sikke en mand må Gunnar være, at for en sikkerheds skyld var der brug for 30
mænd, selv med fordelen af overraskelse, for at angribe og dræbe ham og hans 2
sønner!
WhattamanMug
I dag læser
jeg kapitel 62, hvor vi finder Gunnar og hans sønner, der rejser hjem fra et
sted kaldet ”Tunge”. Én af Gunnars få venner, Asgrim, der boede i Tunge, havde
inviteret Gunnar og hans sønner til en fest, men nu festen er forbi, og de tre
mænd, måske lidt fulde, skal rejse tilbage hjem igen.
Men Gunnar
føler sig lidt søvnig, og han spørger sine sønner, om det er ok hvis han lægger
sig og tager en kort eftermiddagslur. Dette er en form for adfærd, jeg sagtens
kan relatere til - ingen tvivl om det.
Hans sønner,
Kolskegg og Hjort kigger på ham, mens han sover, og de kan se, at han er
mærkeligt rasteløs, og de spekulerer på, om han drømmer. Hjort har lyst til at
vække sin far, men Kolskegg, Hjorts bror, fraråder dette - han vil have sin far
til at fortsætte med at sove og at nyde sin drøm - måske er han i gang med at
hygge sig med én eller anden.
Da Gunnar
vågner, virker han lidt forvirret og han begynder at kværne løs. Det også kan
jeg relatere til. Lois fortæller mig, at jeg har en tendens til at kværne løs og
meningsløs nogle gange, hvis jeg vågner efter en dårlig drøm. Og andre tider
også, siger hun.
17:30 Vi
spiser aftensmad, lidt tidligere, end normalt, fordi bagefter skal Lois ud –
hun ønsker at deltage i sin sekts bibelseminar, der finder sted i aften i byen
Brockworths bibliotek.
Jeg har lidt
alenetid. Pludselig mindes jeg om, at kommunens fjortensdagsindsamling af
affald og haveaffald finder sted i morgen kl 7, og der er næsten ingenting i
begge to af vores hjulede affaldsbeholdere. Pokkers! Jeg pusler rundt i haven
og samler alle de affald og haveaffald, jeg kan finde, og proppe det i beholderne
og skubber dem begge to ud på fortovet.
20:00 Jeg
bruger resten af aftenen på at se lidt fjernsyn, men det er svært at finde et
interessant program, da jeg blader igennem Radio Times-tidsskriftet – det må
jeg nok sige. Til sidst beslutter jeg at afprøve en Channel 5 dokumentarserie,
der handler om Tower of London.
Det virker
utroligt, men aftenens afsnit er den 13. timelange afsnit i denne Channel 5
serie, men så snart jeg ser de første 5 minutter, forstår jeg hvorfor. Tempoet
af programmet er utrolig langsomt, ligesom i mange Channel 5-dokumentarfilm,
med masser af fyldekalk: men der er også
samtaler mellem ”yeoman warders” (beefeaters) og turister, for eksempel,
hvilket i det mindste er underholdende.
vi ser disse charmerende unge studerende
fra
Houston, Texas
Indimellem
imidlertid ser vi et par interessante historiske dokumenter eller kunstværker,
gudskelov: genstande, der er så værdifulde fra et historisk synspunkt, at de
bliver bevaret under beskyttende dækninger af en eller anden art, og kun gravet
frem hver 5. år eller deromkring, bare for at tjekke på deres tilstand.
Min yndlingsudstillingsgenstand
i aften er kong Edward 6.s testamente. Edward var den søn, som Henrik 8.
arbejdede så hårdt for at få, ved at kickstarte den engelske protestantiske reformation
og halshygge så mange af sine dronninger.
Edward var
protestant, men han desværre blev terminalt syg som teenager, og var ved at dø. Problemet
var, at hans lovlige arv var sin storsøster Mary, en vaskeægte katolik.
Så blev stakkels
Edward manipuleret af landets ledende protestanter og overtalt til at skrive et
testament, hvori han nævnte sin kusine, den protestantiske Lady Jane Grey som
sin arvtager i stedet for. Planen blev ikke til noget imidlertid efter Edwards
død, og Mary arvede tronen i 1554.
Det er
interessant at se i aften Edwards testamente, skrevet i sit lidt barnlige håndskrift. Også ganske rørende, at forestille sig scenen,
hvor den syge unge teenager kæmpede at skrive dokumentet under førelse af sin
uhyggelige formynder, hertugen af Northumberland.
kong Edward 6.s
testemente, skrevet i sit barnlige håndskrift
Stakkels Edward !!!!
22:00 Lois kommer tilbage
fra Brockworth, og vi slapper lidt af i sofaen. Bagefter går jeg i seng, men
Lois trænger til at geare lidt ned efter aftenens stimulerende bibelseminar.
Hun hopper op i sengen til mig kl 23 eller deromkring. Zzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
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