God Save the Queen

Greetings from 41 degrees below (latitude, not celcius). Today is the Queen's birthday - Liz the Second’s birthday. The fact that it ISN'T her Real Birthday, or even her Official Birthday doesn't matter a jot. It is just a good old excuse for us to have a long weekend and dig the garden, visit relatives or watch terrible films on TV. I hope she appreciates the effort made on her behalf by her Southerly subjects. It’s the day to sit in traffic queues and pay surcharges on our latte. But the dear lady is worth it, even if she has never done either on our behalf. I wonder if the Queen has ever had a latte? If anyone out there can authoritatively answer that question, I’d be pleased to pass on the answer. My mum and Queenie are the same age. My mum I suspect is whackier and can make a better Yorkshire Pudding, but she would look daft in a tiara.

We seriously blobbed yesterday, watching the first three videos of “War and Peace” at one sitting. I was 10 when I first saw this series, and I fell hopelessly in love with Anthony Hopkins as Pierre. I think this dramatisation sparked my early obsession with things Russian. It would be 19 years before I visited Russia and the interest has never waned. The BBC has a lot to answer for.

I thoroughly appreciated today, as it is the first public holiday since December 1st that I have had off; I’ve worked all 7 so far. We went out to our local French café, tried unsuccessfully to find a kitchen cupboard company and then came home, me to cook up a storm and The Husband to demolish various parts of the shrubbery. Both activities were observed from the sofa and armchair by the cats. They’re not daft our two, having perfected the art of kipping to Doctorate level.
My second huge blanket for a Ukrainian orphanage is almost finished (it will keep a child warm, not the building). I am now starting on The Antipodean Quilt. Ask me in 5 years how it is going…..