That Was The Year That Was (if you’ll excuse me going a bit Millicent Martin-y just for a moment). An unsettling one, full of uncertainty, dominated, like 2020, by Brexit and by Coronavirus. I have to admit I’m not really sure of the current state of either (although I know you can’t get a jab against Brexit).
Less globally, it was the year I turned fifty, my Dad turned eighty, and my Aunt turned… er, turned out, um, also to have a milestone birthday. (Phew.)
Not that 2021 is all done with yet, we’re only eleven-twelfths of the way through (or 91.67% if you’re not vulgar enough for fractions). This time last week we seemed to be heading towards a ‘normal’ Christmas – and then suddenly, out of nowhere, up pops a new Covid variant!
I’m sure there are perfectly valid scientific reasons for naming it after one of the Transformers but frankly, whatever you call it it’s put a bit of a damper on things. If nothing else it shows that, even this close to Christmas and as last year made very clear, there’s still plenty of time for the Government to channel the spirit of Margo Leadbetter and declare that Christmas is Cancelled.
Unless or until that happens though, I guess we stick to plan A and even I, unprepared and humbuggy as I am, felt a little tingle of excitement when I turned over the calendar this morning to discover, as indeed I had suspected, that it is December 1st again. So here we are, and here we go, Christmas is on the way…
…which will, of course, be my fifty-first Christmas, my Dad’s eighty-first, and my Aunt’s… er… and my Aunt’s, um… and my Aunt’s probably looking forward to it as well!!
Andrew Curnow's Ramblings 