Good morning to you all on a glorious, fresh, bright blue-skied February morning in beautiful downtown Byfield. We had a grand evening last night in Stratford where we went for “Merry Wives – The Musical” which was good fun. I had the flier through from the Royal Shakespeare Company before Christmas and it sounded amusing so I solicited some interest from the Waltons and our friends Sue and Stuart and we booked. This was, fortunately, before the reviews – the performance was almost universally panned but we figured what the heck – the reviewers aren’t always right, are they? (I think they certainly were regarding the monstrosity we made Sallie and Rod endure when they were here and also with regard to Great Expectations which we saw about this time last year). But, perhaps this would be good in spite of what the so-called experts felt. The cast was a veritable “Who’s Who” of British drama at the moment. Although Helen Mirren didn’t make the cut, Dame Judi Dench played Mistress Quickly and Simon Callow played Falstaff. Haydn Gwynne, one of my all-time favourites, played Mistress Page and Alistair McGowan, better known as an impersonator, played Frank Ford and all of them, with the possible exception of Dame Judi, sang exceedingly well. Of course, it’s based on “The Merry Wives of Windsor” but it was a musical (as you might have guessed) which might, at first impression, seem like a decidedly bad idea, but in fact was a lot of fun. And, of course, they do everything on such a grand scale at Stratford – the set was fabulous, the choreography was superb, the performances were excellent and the three hours positively flew by. And, that’s not to mention the fantastic meal we had before the performance! A splendid night out. And then, this morning, I was able to catch up on yesterday’s first rugby match of this year's Six Nations competition – England at home to Scotland. I appreciate that most of you don’t particularly follow the fortunes of England on the rugby pitch but suffice it to say that over the past couple of years they have been lamentable. Yesterday, however, they had Jonny Wilkinson back after numerous injuries for his first international match since the World Cup in 2003 (in which, of course, he kicked the winning drop goal). He didn’t score all of England’s points, merely 27 of England’s 42, but one might be forgiven for imagining that English rugby is set to storm the world again. And speaking of important sporting fixtures, I have now secured Penelope’s pick for the Superbowl this evening. She has decided to opt for the Colts so it’s time to put all your money, your pension fund and the children’s college funds on the Bears to win. We did have several comments on the Top Ten List of the most Sexually Adventurous States last weekend and, in particular, the remarkable news (to me, at any rate) that inhabitants of Missouri are the most sexually adventurous in the US. Surprisingly, however, those who might have known, i.e. Mom and Dad, failed to divulge the particularly adventurous antics which resulted in the conception and arrival of our sister Susie. I guess we shall just have to continue to use our imagination. And finally, from the BBC web site, you will remember the story a few days ago about the duck which was shot and spent two days in a refrigerator. Well, it seems that Perky, as it has been named, has managed to come back from the dead again.
So, Jonny Wilkinson saves England in the rugby and Perky the duck demonstrates remarkable resilience – all is right with the world! Love to you all, Greg From Dad (along with the attached photo) WINTER: UPSTATE NEW YORK Dear Diary: OCT. 14 NOV. 11 DEC. 2 DEC. 12 DEC. 19 DEC. 22 DEC. 25 DEC. 28 JAN. 1 JAN. 4 MAY 3 MAY 10
A friend and his wife were considering travelling to Alaska for a trip that the husband had long dreamed of taking. He kept talking about how great it would be to stay in a log cabin without electricity, to hunt moose, and drive a dog team instead of a car. "If we decided to live there permanently, away from civilization, what would you miss the most?" he asked his wife. She replied, "You." The local university lab has decided to lay off all of the lab rats. You would think that this was due to animal rights protesters complaining about their treatment, but the university found that it was easer to use attorneys. No one complains - and there are just some things a rat just will not do. It’s old but still tolerably amusing: Morris, a Russian man, saved his roubles for twenty years to buy a new car. After choosing the model and options he wants, he's not the least bit surprised or even concerned to learn that it will take two years for the new car to be delivered. He thanks the salesman and starts to leave, but as he reaches the door he pauses and turns back to the salesman, "Do you know which week two years from now the new car will arrive?" he asks. The salesman checks his notes and tells the Morris that it will be two years to the exact week. The man thanks the salesman and starts out again, but upon reaching the door, he turns back again. "Could you possibly tell me what day of the week two years from now the car will arrive?" The salesman, mildly annoyed, checks his notes again and says that it will be exactly two years from this week, on Thursday. Morris thanks the salesman and once again starts to leave. Halfway through the door, he hesitates, turns back, and walks up to the salesman. "I'm sorry to be so much trouble, but do you know if that will be two years from now on Thursday in the morning, or in the afternoon?" Visibly irritated, the salesman flips through his papers yet another time and says sharply that it will be in the afternoon, two years from now on Thursday. "That's a relief!" says Morris. "The plumber is coming that morning." Back to the Befouled Weakly News Index Back to Greg's Temporary Home Page
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Florida vets working to repair gunshot damage to Perky's wing panicked when the duck twice stopped breathing. 