Jessie looking a tad laconic, yep.
Category Archives: Family tales
Celebrity coincidences
I was in Planet Organic off Tottenham Court Road today and found my way to the cereals aisle in search of proper porridge, only to find myself standing next to someone who was the spitting image of Persian-born childrens’ campaigner Camila Batmanghelidjh. (Apt for me saddened by the death of Kodjo Yenja in Hammersmith Grove on Wednesday, not far from work).
Later talking to Diane she said she’d been outside the Ritz and seen Liza Minnelli’s ex-hubby David Gest. Way to go Diane (but I think I prefer my celebrity spot)! Later I spotted who I now know was BBC Newsnight’s Diplomatic Editor Mark Urban on Tottenham Court Road. Sorry for the slow recognition on that. 
The History (4) Boys
Diane caught up with Leicester radical historian Ned Newitt the other day and bemoaned the fact that I wasn’t ‘doing history’ any more. OK, that’s partly just another common mum type theme about sons not doing what their mothers want. But I confess since ‘Uni’ (1987) I haven’t entirely been quiet. After all I did help the 30th anniversary campaign (1998) with Dr Coby Smith to re-try the real killers of Dr Martin Luther King, re-writing history in the process. But that’s mothers for you. Never happy.
PS: Looking forward to unveiling of the MLK scuplture in Washington DC next year, April 
2008, also a US election year I believe? I’m sure these connections are not lost on Rev Al Sharpton, from what he was saying about the lasting legacy of slavery on the Daily Show. Funny thing is how going to Brazil I found out more slaves went there than the US; maybe that’s why Snoop did his video from there? The connections are there to be discovered, that’s history. (Funny, didn’t I hear earlier this month that the study of slavery is going to be part of the National Curriculum in the UK, as part of the study of the British Empire?).
Celebration
Saw Harold Pinter’s play ‘Celebration’ on the TV, and loved the line about all mother’s want to make love to their sons, very funny. All the more so for when thanks to Red Pepper magazine which was supported by Pinter I happened to go back to his place with everyone else and I had the cheek to call my mother from his kitchen. Talking of Red Pepper it also makes my laugh now to think that Hilary used to moan that Harold P would complain if his articles were edited in any way. The cheek of the man, who does he think he is?! OK, enough I’m off to work, it’s the last day of February.
Odds and Ends
In no particular order of oddness:
1. Some nice person stole my nice new bicycle saddle – I expected to happen but I couldn’t be bothered to cover it over with a blue plastic bag.
2. Is there a difference between a complex system and a system that is complex? For (I’m helping the techie’s here with a complex clue) there is a difference between a black girl and a girl that is black.
3. My mother, on mention of the strain of A-levels, remarked that I had sailed through them; I had chance to point out: I put on 1.5 stones in weight during the immediate run-up, and despite a 2 E’s offer from Exeter. It didn’t help my grandmother was dying at the time, or that my parents were not exactly head over heels in love which each other at the time. But don’t mention the ‘war’.
4. Which does remind me we spent
Camping for the first time
4th anniversary – 4 o’clock kick off
I’ve just spent all my pocket money on two tickets to see Brazil vs Argentina, with Kaka down to play, on 3 September. It’s also a nice way to say thanks to Shirley on our 4th anniversary (1st meeting at the Barley Mow in Shoreditch on a Rolling Stones night). Plus a great way to see the new Arsenal stadium!
How my generation lost the plot
I enjoyed skimming through Charlotte Raven’s Guardian piece on how the pressures of parenthood so easily force you to lose liberal principles and accept conservative reality.
I’d just like to sympathise and say it’s parenthood, but liberalism that’s the problem. I mean that guru of liberalism, John Stuart Mills, in inadvertently hit the nail on the head when he pondered how come 19th England could be so democratic when its empire was not, particularly, democratic. Hello, that’s liberalism, that’s idealism. It is by its very nature fantastic at providing glossy vision, which is when you dig down deep, not where reality is. Hence, why Charlotte Raven is finding her liberal principles out of step with the messy reality of child-rearing.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a child of Benjamin Spock (“His ideas about childcare influenced several generations of parents to be more flexible and affectionate with their children, and to treat them as individuals..”) and all. But you see lots of middle class well-meaning couples who do fantastically well in their careers, only to fall down in their personal lives. Why? Er, I blame the liberalism vs reality conflict. (Tomorrow it will be something else for me to blame).
BTW not many people know this but Spock was set to run with Dr Martin Luther King Jr on a joint presidential ticket, cut short by King’s assassination.
Saturday morning
Had a nice chat with Evie about Foxton Locks. Talked to Andy about white water rafting in August. Now off to Jamie’s to see England play Portugal. (Funny how everyone was impressed by the fact that Shirley has got a promotion!).
The Yes Men have landed (on me)
Just watched the satirical film ‘The Yes Men’ which was a hoot! In the spirit of prankstership I donated $5 and asked my parents to buy me one of the Yes Men fabulous dress shirts for my birthday:
