David Jenkins' weblog

Life’s too short to drink instant coffee

Category: life

  • I’m Welsh. Does it matter?

    I’m Welsh. Does it matter?

    —

    in ,

    I’d written this piece for my writing group which was due to meet 1 Mar 19, Dydd Dewi Sant (St David’s Day). Sadly our host for the day has a family medical emergency so we had to postpone. Given the timeliness of the piece I thought I’d post it anyway and write something else for…

  • Twin peaks of happiness

    Twin peaks of happiness

    —

    in ,

    According to the Resolution Foundation people are at their happiest when they’re 16 or 70. It’s an average of course and does beg the question ‘what about people who die before they reach 70?’ but it’s worth some thought. Its research also suggests that people are at their least happy in their 50s which I…

  • My first years in school

    My first years in school

    —

    in ,

    When I went to school in Connah’s Quay you started in the Infants School, I went to Dee Road Infants, before moving onto Custom House Lane County Primary which was what we’d now call a junior school. Coincidentally it’s the setup in Histon where I live now.

  • On the job in Jakarta

    On the job in Jakarta

    —

    in ,

    Time is elastic and your perceptions of it evolve over time. Looking back I remember working for just two years in Indonesia and that’s not many in a working life that’s extended over five decades. But at the time it didn’t seem so short. Not because it bored me but because it was so rich…

  • New year, what new year?

    New year, what new year?

    —

    in ,

    I don’t know about you but there’s not been much of a new year’s feeling round here. Granted we’ve had the big firework shows in the world’s big cities and pubs, clubs and restaurants have been running more expensive New Year’s Eve events but on the ground I’ve got the feeling that many people just…

  • 2018: It’s been another good year

    2018: It’s been another good year

    —

    in

    I can’t complain. I’ve turned 71 and I’ve ended the year at 70kg. By and large there’s been more good news than bad, although some of the latter is pretty awful, and I’ve got the luxury of being able to take a view from a position of some security.

  • I’ve got a cold

    I’ve got a cold

    —

    in ,

    Nothing unusual about that but as with most of my experiences these days it prompts a little reflection.

  • Days of my life

    Days of my life

    —

    in

    It was the last session of my ‘writing class’ on Friday and I wrote the following. I thought it paled by comparison with the efforts of the other attendees but they were nice about it and our teacher said it was ‘excellent’ which is even nicer. We will be continuing to meet informally as a…

  • New York, New York

    New York, New York

    —

    in

    Here’s a second piece which I’ve written as a contribution for this week’s ‘Writing about your life’ session at Histon library. ‘The winter of 1973/74 began with the Yom Kippur War and ended with a miners strike. The first limited petrol supplies and the second gave rise to the three day week and led to…

  • I grew up in my grandfather’s house. He was a butcher.

    I grew up in my grandfather’s house. He was a butcher.

    —

    in

    I wrote the following for my contribution to today’s ‘Writing about your life’ session at Histon library. QUOTE I grew up in my grandfather’s house. He was a butcher. I seem to say this quite often and it’s generally in connection with a conversation about food. It’s used to establish my right to comment on…