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Notes on the various letters
1.
The Royal Welsh
Life has to be put into context. For instance, if you have
a sore throat give thanks you’re not a giraffe. In the Royal
Welsh Show life puts you into context and underlines your
place in the grand scheme of things, especially when the
bulls are on parade for supreme champion.
2.
Olympian Spirit
Taking part is the thing they say, but my word,
winning helps the adrenalin rush as well, especially
when you’re in dodgy daps. Consider how you would
fare in the annual school sports if your claim to
fame is more academic than athletic as with Conshie
Davies in the school exams, and talking of outdoor
pursuits, who was that girl who was so fast…and
not bad in sport either.
3.
Ageism
IQ is a funny thing. It is said that a man gets
shorter as he gets older, so will your IQ suffer
in the gradually reducing inside leg measurement
department? Is taking out an insurance policy the
only reliable way of getting a medical these days?
4.
Sleeping Around
Do bedrooms become part of your personal universe?
How can you react and readjust to the testing bed
and breakfast venue, rain on the caravan roof and
the tent that leaves every dingle and dip in the
countryside marked on your back? What does a warm
toilet seat tell you anyway?
5.
No Place Like Home
When did we move to a buying culture from a renting
culture? Do you remember the days that £1350
would buy you two houses, a new Hillman and leave
you something left over for the weekend? Were sapele
doors big in your formative period?
6.
Where Do We Come From?
Pedigree is all very fine, but it is an uncertain
field to go grazing in when you go looking into
your background. Mongrels after all are loyal and
tidy around the house. Family background is a quilt
with many colourful patches; some of them are quite
threadbare.
7.
In the Club
Being ‘in’ is important to some people, and the
blazer is a key that can open many doors. We all
have deep down the need to be in the gang so that
we have that sense of belonging even if the tie
badge indicates that vasectomy has a wider membership
than you think.
8.
Harvest and New Schools
We reap what we sow, and hopefully memories of harvest
festivals in schools give perennialflowering memories
to bring a smile to the face. Were you pushy in
school by any chance, or did you like me miss out
on your chocolate pudding and pink sauce in 1951.
available
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PO Box 219, Mumbles,Swansea, SA3 5YJ
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