A favourite sampler
It’s now Wednesday November 8, 2023. Kia ora!
Last Monday morning I met a friend for morning tea at the Johnsonville Shopping Centre. I needed to pick up a prescription and get some cards (three birthdays coming up, and a farewell card). I also wanted to visit the Hannahs shoe store, which has moved to where Warehouse Stationery used to be. Apparently Hannahs has merged with Number One Shoes; I made my way there, a bit of a challenge in the cold and wet, but it is very like a warehouse, where the customer does all the work. Although Hannah’s has twice featured a promotional brochure, with two pairs of Hush Puppies shoes on special that I would like to try on, they didn’t have them here. There is no longer a Hannah’s store in Lambton Quay; the prominent one in Napier has moved too. As the Hush Puppies store in Willis St has closed down, I am at a bit of a loss, with respect to buying Hush Puppies shoes. This brand costs a bit more, but the shoes are comfortable and suit me well. So that’s a bit frustrating. I am very reluctant to buy shoes online! Really, one needs to try them on.
It was cold and wet on Monday, after being really warm on Sunday! Although it rained on Sunday evening. Strange weather. I made my way home, and we had lunch at the 1841 pub (creamy mushrooms), but the food there doesn’t really agree with me any more. We had tried Simmer Café in Churton Park, but there were no seats available, and it was too wet to sit outside. Café Thyme was closed, its being a Monday.
On Tuesday my eight-year old granddaughter was dropped off for a while. She had been unwell, and her parents didn’t want to send her to school, but she wasn’t sick enough to be in bed. I had a lively talk with her! It’s nice when grandchildren get old enough to have a conversation.
Last night we watched the 1965 film “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold”, starring Richard Burton, Claire Bloom and a cast of famous actors. It’s in black and white, but it’s a really good film. For some reason I haven’t watched it earlier. JD had tried unsuccessfully to find a free version of the complete film on Youtube; but suddenly, there it was (with annoying advertisements).
This morning I got up early to go to hymn singing. It was lovely, of course! It’s so good to be meeting like this again. Afterwards I talked to the organist about singing O Holy Night at the coming Carol Service. Then there was another Te Reo Māori class at Khandallah Town Hall, now at 10:15 am. I was very tired, for some reason, but we played another card game – Remembrance (in English). It was a good way of being familiar with numbers in Māori. JD had agreed to pick me up afterwards; I got some lunch from Parsons Café, and met him at the New World supermarket. It was very quiet when I went there, and the carpark was half empty, but this changed, of course, and by the time JD arrived it was very busy. There was a bus to Johnsonville at 11:15 am, but with the class starting later, it was hard to catch this.
Our three-year old granddaughter was due to come from 1 – 3 pm, while her mother helped out with swimming at her son’s primary school. JD and I had been to her house twice: she wanted to come to our house today. I had got out some toys for her: the doll’s house, the push chair, and several soft toys. In the event, we read stories, and did puzzles: I’d found the Bananas in Pyjamas puzzle that went with the story book, and she enjoyed that. What a joy, to look after her, though! We haven’t seen so much of her, thanks to Covid, coughs and colds. I asked her what we should tell Father Christmas she’d like for Christmas, but the answer was – presents!
It’s now Friday November 9th.
Yesterday I went to my Thursday morning singing. It is really hard to get to Khandallah at present, so I was very pleased to be dropped off. Afterwards, a dear friend brought me home. There weren’t as many people at singing, perhaps because getting to Khandallah, let alone getting a carpark, was so difficult. It was lovely, though.
We are watching World at War on TVNZ+. A new series has been released, but we’re watching series one again. I have very vague memories of this, so it’s good to see it again. Lesley Manville is wonderful, of course, and Sean Bean, but all the actors are good. You get occasional gems on what is now TVNZ+ (formerly TVNZ On Demand), amongst all the dross. We’re also watching series 2 of The Gilded Age on Neon. An episode is being released each week. It’s a bit like Succession to watch: frustrating, but without the swearing. I do find the hats ridiculous, and the tight-fitting dresses; but it’s fun to watch in a masochistic kind of way.
Today I cancelled Access, and we went to the Art Group instead – it’s the final for the year, already! I didn’t bring any food; it wasn’t asked for, but some of us had coffee afterwards. I took my laptop to the Art club, hoping to be creative by doing some writing. And here I am.
Trump testimony
Trump’s eldest sons Don Jr and Eric testified in Trump’s New York civil fraud trial, and then Trump himself did, and then Ivanka. She’s not being prosecuted in the New York fraud trial because of the statute of limitations, which I think means that because she worked for the presidency during her father’s time as president, whereas Don Jr and Eric were responsible for the Trump business. Don Jr was arrogant and bombastic, Eric came across as even more stupid (he was in real estate but poured concrete rather than doing appraisals), and Ivanka (was she wearing a wig?) also had a terrible memory. One almost feels some sympathy for Trump, having children with such terrible memories.
But when Trump took the stand it was something else: bombastic, avoiding the questions, and really exhausting and annoying. Every time he spoke you wished he’d shut up. We were reminded of how annoying he can be. Someone said he was reminded of the Chicago 7 trial arising from events in 196,. where the defendants so ridiculed the court that the trial became farcical. The judge reminded Trump that this was not a political rally, and asked his lawyer to control his client, if he could. So that was interesting. This trial seems to matter to Trump far more than his other legal jeopardy, but he’s obviously very angry. But he admitted to his crimes.
There were elections in the US recently, where Democrats did rather well. Andy Beshear won the gubernatorial race in Kentucky with a higher majority than previously; in Ohio an abortion initiative won for the democrats, and in Virginia, Democrats now control the House and the Senate. So the Dems did rather well, by most accounts. Republicans criticize the Democrats, but that is their wont. The New York Times published poll results that were not great for Biden, and this has caused a lot of distress. But the Dems are quite good at winning elections. So on it goes.
It’s now Sunday November 12th.
This morning a friend have me a lift to church. Bearing in mind that it’s much warmer now, I wore black trousers, a black and while short-sleeved blouse, and a red linen jacket. I was quite warm enough in the church, although it became cold and windy later on. Church was lovely, of course; the organist was playing Bach’s Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring as we entered. The sermon was based on the Old Testament text from Joshua 24: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”; the New Testament text was from Matthew 25, the parable of the foolish bridesmaids (or virgins, depending on your translation). The minister stressed the importance of choosing the Lord God, and then of being ready for His next coming.
Afterwards JD picked me up to go to an Italian Film Festival film at the Embassy Theatre at 12 noon, about Naples. It’s the last day of the Italian Film Festival in Wellington, and this is the only film I’ve managed to get to. I was very early, and had to go upstairs to get a ticket. The Black Sparrow, the upstairs bar, was closed, and so I thought I would get coffee downstairs. Silly me! The downstairs bar was closed too, so I had time to go to the restroom, and then look up to see how long the film was – almost two hours! I sat through the film, which I found very affecting. It’s set in a poor area of Naples, La Sanita, and the film maker explained he’d been away for 40 years, and nothing had changed. Well, JD and I were last there in February 2010, and nothing had changed from what we saw! The same poverty, narrow streets, motorcycles, washing hung out across the street, people looking anxiously out of windows, and the same sense of disrepair, holes in walls, painting needed, and not much in the way of greenery. This grave state of lack of repair contrasted with the motorways, where smart cars stream past seemingly oblivious to the chaos beneath. The main star visits the catacombs at one stage, and again one is horrified by the rows and rows of skulls. The catholic cathedral is on better shape than the other buildings. I am so glad I saw this.
Afterwards, of course, I wanted something to eat, but Courtenay Place has many Chinese or Indian restaurants, but few if any coffee bars. I ended up walking to Pandoro on the corner of Wakefield Street and Allen St, where I had an oat milk latté and a baguette.
Afterwards I was going to catch a bus along Manners St and go shopping, but I was just too tired. I eventually found the bus stop for buses going north, and got onto a Churton Park bus. JD met me at Churton Park – he had just returned from an appointment.
In New Zealand, we still wait for a coalition government to be formed by Christopher Luxon. Any negotiations (presumably there are negotiations going on?) are secret. One friend of mine said this was a good thing, seeing projected cuts of present benefits cannot be made. On the other hand, several climate-related initiatives have been put on hold. Meanwhile, Chris Hipkins has been sworn in as Prime Minister again, and a seat in Nelson has gone to Labour after a recount: by 24 votes! Yes, it was a disappointing election outcome, but not exactly a “bloodbath”.
That’s it for now. One had to feel sorry for King Charles III opening Parliament, with all the appropriate pomp and circumstance, and having to read Prime Minister Sunak’s speech which seems largely in opposition to his own views. A good outing for the dressing-up cupboard, quipped one newspaper. Slava Ukraini! Ngā mihi nui.
Classic Barbarian 