In honor of this celebrated Scottish poet, here are the words of one of his favorite poems; To A Mouse.
Also, an excerpt from To A Louse:-
O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!
It wad frae mony a blunder free us,
An’ foolish notion:
What airs in dress an’ gait wad lea’e us,
An’ ev’n devotion!
After returning from spending Christmas at Angels Camp, I was surprised to get a call from a friend with whom I had lost touch about 30 years ago.
Jim Malinowski, along with Joe Ward, Dan McNerney and myself were the foursome who founded the unofficial ‘Commonwealth Club’ which celebrated all notable holidays in Scotland, Canada and the United States; while we resided at a great boarding house run by the Jorgensens on Vernon Street in Oakland, California.
Jim is an American citizen; but his state of residence, Washington, bordering British Columbia, provides him co-opted membership. LOL. It was my honor to be best man at his wedding back in the early 1960’s. It is with regret that I do not even remember the date or the year. Shame on me. The last time we met was in the middle of the 1970’s.
The call was most welcome; especially since we had lost touch, all these many years. Thanks should be given to Jim Sibbring who had tracked me down some time back, was also a boarding house resident and was responsible for putting Jim Malinowski in touch with me.
During our phone conversation and out of the blue, Jim M. asked me if I had ever read this book, “How the Scots Invented the Modern World“. He was greatly surprised when I admitted that I had not and promised to send me a copy. True to his word, the book arrived the other day.
Hopefully, in the not too distant future, there will be a partial reunion of the Jorgensen boarding house gang. The last I heard from Joe Ward, he was in New Zealand and Dan McNerney may be reached through Jim Sibbring.
It is nice when lost friendships are renewed>
It is not too often I going shopping with Joyce; but when I do, I carry a book with me, find a seat in the store, mall or stay in the car and stay in touch via our cell phones, if necessary. Now, although this works in principle, Joyce is still aware that I am waiting; but, let me say, not impatiently.
Most of the time that we go shopping together is when she is not comfortable driving: but I am totally aware that Joyce would really prefer to be on her own to browse at her own pace and not be conscious that I am waiting.
These thoughts were brought to mind by an article in The Scotsman which, in essence, said that women prefer to shop alone. That is no news to me but confirms my feelings.
So , listen up y’all. When it comes to shopping, think twice before heading out together.
