08:00 Another quiet lockdown day begins with a shower. I know Lois is feeling nervous this morning, because she’s got to give
her presentation on baptism to her sect’s Iranian immigrant group after lunch.
But as the time for the presentation gets nearer, I observe her becoming more
confident – I can tell. If only I could be like that!
She’s the opposite to me – I start off feeling confident, if I’ve
got to give a talk (basically because I’m in denial, and putting it all out of
my mind). But as the time to give my talk gets nearer, I go into a complete panic.
Yikes!
We are both introverts, but Lois is more extrovert than me, no
doubt about that.
We hear an interesting radio talk this morning – an interview with
a young American, Jessica Pan, who lives in London. She wrote a book all about
her year of "living as an introvert pretending to be an extrovert”: an interesting idea. Too late for me, I think!
I particularly like Jessica’s title for the book – “Sorry I’m
late: I didn’t want to come”.
I have generally all my life been pathological about arriving
early for any engagement – often as much as an hour early, or more: whether it’s
to get a good parking space or just so that I don’t panic if I lose my way, it
didn’t matter - I had to get there in good time.
But as I got within 10 years of retirement I began to realize that
I had started showing up almost late for things – specifically for things like management training
courses about the latest crazy fashionable-for-a-month management theories. In the end I
figured out the reason for this dramatic change in behaviour: yes, I hadn’t wanted to come!
Hail to thee, Jessica Pan – you kept us out of war….
13:30 I go off for my afternoon nap, while Lois sits down with the
laptop to give her presentation to her sect’s class of Iranian immigrants with
the help of a Farsi interpreter. The subject is Adult Baptism by Full
Immersion.
a typical slide from the presentation
She told me later it went very well, and there were lots of
questions, which is nice. She and the chairman convinced the class members that
they shouldn’t feel under pressure to get baptized quickly, in the hope of speeding up their immigrant visas – the Home Office staff in charge of their applications
would be more impressed if they saw that the Iranians were taking proper time
and care over such a decision.
The next two sessions, to be given on the following two Tuesdays,
will be about some of the things they will have to accept that they must not do
after they are baptized: e.g. vote in elections or become members of the armed forces
and the like.
19:30 Lois goes into the dining-room to take part in a meeting of her sect to decide what to do about their weekly bible seminars. I’m beginning to
feel a bit like a “zoom widower”, but no matter – that’s not important right
now! I think they’re going to decide to merge the Monday seminar with the
Tuesday one, and make it one big online session, which seems to make sense.
19:45 I settle down in the living room and hear the second part of
an interesting drama series about the birth of the “I Love Lucy” sitcom on
American TV.
I missed the first episode, which was aired last night, but the
situation they’ve arrived at so far seems to be that one of the US networks is
interested in having a TV show based around Desi and Lucy, and they are settling
to the theme that Desi will be a showbizzy band leader (“Ricky Ricardo”) – ie same
as his real life role – while Lucy will just be an ordinary housewife, with
ordinary concerns.
And as it’s the 1950’s that means Lucy’s going to have to be a bit
ditsy and scatter-brained with it – oh dear!
But sadly that was the only way they thought that a woman could be funny in those days - oh dear (again) !!!
But sadly that was the only way they thought that a woman could be funny in those days - oh dear (again) !!!
There’s some discussion with the studio about the title of the
show – should it have Desi’s name in it, as he’s so big in the music world? The
makers manage to persuade him otherwise, telling him that the projected title “I
Love Lucy” is obviously his
line, and nobody else’s.
There’s some discussion about the couple’s sleeping arrangements –
twin beds, of course, as the Hayes Code is still quite powerful. But the network
is still complaining that the beds are too close together – they want at least a
36 inch gap, so as not to imply that the couple’s relationship is anything
other than platonic: even though Lucy was at the time actually (in real life)
obviously pregnant. Desi asks how the network think the baby was conceived? I
didn’t tell them how, said the producer.
Ricky and Lucy’s beds – had to be at least 36
inches apart
What madness !!!!!
I discuss this with Lois later. We seem to remember that Dick Van
Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore also slept in twin beds, but what was the situation
in British TV sitcoms of the era?
When we think back, Lois and I realize that when it came to the sitcoms
in the 1950’s in the UK, it was radio comedy that still dominated – we were still
probably a few years behind the US when it came to TV set ownership.
And both the TV an the radio sitcoms that we did have, tended to avoid family situations, we realize looking back – they were mostly about friends, single people sharing a house, or same sex people sharing a house, situations which were thought to allow for more varied comic possibilities. We think that in the 1950’s ordinary British family life just wasn’t considered funny enough – oh dear, but perhaps they were right!
"Life with the Lyons", the only exception to the above, was very Americanized - it was centred around an American family living in London. Lois and I don't remember, but we feel sure that Ben and Bebe would have had twin beds too.
And both the TV an the radio sitcoms that we did have, tended to avoid family situations, we realize looking back – they were mostly about friends, single people sharing a house, or same sex people sharing a house, situations which were thought to allow for more varied comic possibilities. We think that in the 1950’s ordinary British family life just wasn’t considered funny enough – oh dear, but perhaps they were right!
"Life with the Lyons", the only exception to the above, was very Americanized - it was centred around an American family living in London. Lois and I don't remember, but we feel sure that Ben and Bebe would have had twin beds too.
"Life with the Lyons"
20:30 Alison, our daughter in Haslemere, Surrey, rings us. She had
a nice 45th birthday weekend with Ed and the 3 children in Norfolk at
the weekend, and they are planning to come and stay with us in 2 weeks’ time,
bringing a couple of tents to set up in our back garden, which will be nice.
Ed is very busy at the moment - he works in legal affairs for the Scottish railway companies, working from home. There was unfortunately a train crash in Scotland a couple of weeks ago, and the companies are also in negotiations with the Government to help keep their businesses going during the COVID crisis. So Ed is doing long hours.
Poor Ed !!!!!
Ed is very busy at the moment - he works in legal affairs for the Scottish railway companies, working from home. There was unfortunately a train crash in Scotland a couple of weeks ago, and the companies are also in negotiations with the Government to help keep their businesses going during the COVID crisis. So Ed is doing long hours.
Poor Ed !!!!!
22:00 We go to bed – zzzzzzzzz!!!!
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