When I was in Cork, my mother said, “Oh Anne, we would love if you could stay for longer.” “I know,” I said, “but, you know, they want me back home in Dublin too. I’m just so popular, everyone wants to have me stay.”
My sister interjected, “Actually, I’d say Dan [our brother] could take you or leave you.”
Blogging has been light of late. I have been very busy; work, the house, nationwide travel. I swapped my day for collecting the children from school to facilitate a work commitment. When I arrived, late, to collect the troops, herself was very cross. When I asked what was wrong she said, “It wasn’t your usual day to collect us and I was worried that you had forgotten us.” My poor misfortunate children.
Daniel: Tomorrow is a day.
Me: Well, yes, of course it is.
Daniel: No, it’s a day.
Me: No, today is a day, it’s Ash Wednesday and yesterday was a day, it was Pancake Tuesday but tomorrow is just Thursday.
Daniel (insistently): No, it’s a day!
Me: It’s the day you start your mid-term break?
Him: NO.
Me: It’s the day I’m going to drive you to Cork?
Him: NO!
Me: Well, I don’t know then sweetheart.
This morning before we drove to Cork Mr. Waffle gave me a Valentine’s card. Turns out today is a day. Did I have a lovely card for him? A tasteful gift? Alas, no. I hope he still loves me.
Over the years I have left a fair share of my income in the Avoca cafe in Suffolk Street. After a tough week recently, I went in at the tail end of the working day for a cup of tea and a bun. Owing to my head cold, I had a lemsip instead of tea (powder by me, boiling water by them). After I had finished my bun, I went to pay, sniffing into my tissue (lemsip only moderately effective) and the man behind the counter (known to me by sight) smiled kindly at me and said, “That’s alright.” “Eh?” “Ah sure, it’s only a bit of chocolate.” Free bun worth €3.65 for me. Also, I suppose, free boiling water, and a warm, toasty glow. Wasn’t that lovely?
We went up to the Hellfire Club in the Dublin mountains last weekend to see the snow but alas, it had almost, but not entirely, melted.
Me: You see, we weren’t late this morning and Daddy wasn’t cross.
Her: But he would have been, had we tarried.
“Had we tarried” really? What is she reading?