Work and non-work

It’s been a bit of a crazy week. This is partly because tomorrow is our big national exam day and therefore our exam students, who have spent much of the year not doing a lot of the homework that we set them, have leapt into action, burnt lots of midnight oil and given us big piles of things to mark. And of course it all has to be handed back more or less immediately to give them a chance to benefit from our sage advice.

It’s amazing how many students wait behind at the end of class at this time of year and say things such as, “I’m having trouble writing literature essays. Can you give me a few pointers?”

Exactly what do they think I’ve been doing all year? Telling them a whole lot of nonsense so that I could keep the good stuff, the answer to all their problems, till the very last lesson – when all would be revealed?

But I don’t say this. I sigh and repeat all the usual advice. The real answer, I feel like telling them, is to read a lot and practise writing a lot, well in advance of the exam. Starting when they were about eight. It’s a bit late now.

Anyway. The other thing keeping me busy has been that this is the start of the birthday season chez Life. My mother was 86 last Friday, our son-in-law 28 yesterday and Mr Life attained his 60th birthday today. How can I be married to a 60-year-old? – at my age? Astonishing. There have been various celebrations of these splendid events. We had my mum to dinner on her birthday and then on Saturday we took her to lunch at Crieff Hydro. At the top, there she is in the gardens, with the hotel in the background. Then above, another view of the grounds - it was a lovely sunny day.

Later we went for a walk up the hill behind the Hydro where we scattered my dad's ashes last year. We said hello to him.

Here's Mr Life pointing out something or other to my mum.

Maybe it was this view. The weather had got a bit hazy by then, but it was still lovely.

Then today we had a birthday dinner for Mr Life (and son-in-law) and on Sunday, once our boy has returned from New Zealand, we’ll have the extended family to lunch for further celebrations. Mr Life got a single lens reflex digital camera for his birthday and has been playing happily with it ever since. He’s a man easily pleased with cake and expensive technology. No doubt he will share today’s photos with me in due course. Watch this space. You can’t wait, can you?