I am still chuckling as I write this short and sweet one about Lottie. She’s our number four who as I’ve told you before only goes to prove that sometimes its worth persevering, I’m delighted to be able to brag. She’s at the Perse Upperherself and had the first of a series of mock GCSE’s exams earlier this week. “How did you get on Lottie?” I asked her nonchalantly, whilst tucking into a handful of delicious salted peanuts from Aldi as is my want of an evening these days. She didn’t even pause. “Oh very well I think. If I answered everything correctly I’m pretty sure I’ll get 100%.”
A note on drinking habits in Japan got me thinking of a story I read about earlier this week. I’m Scottish, as I think you probably know, so I can say this, but wasn’t it inevitable that it would be us Scots who spoil it for a bunch of Benedictine Monks in Devon? For the past 90 years or so the monks have been making a handy living from an interesting concoction they created called Buckfast or “Bucky” as it is affectionately known in Dundee and possibly other parts of Scotland. But whilst everywhere else in the UK manages to responsibly enjoy the energising effect of this wine and caffeine tonic, in Scotland it just seems to get people fighting. In a case involving a teenager who had downed two and a half bottles of Bucky (75cl bottles @ 15% alcohol content….fair do’s I suppose ) brought in front of the Dundee Sheriff Court the judge expressed his opinion that there is a very definite association between Buckfast and violence. “Mine’s a bottle of Bucky….yoooze want sum, pal?”
Mind you I nearly got in a fight on the train home last night and I’d only had a couple of glasses of Chilean red at our office Christmas drinks. The trains were up the spout so everyone was on edge I suppose and maybe I shouldn’t therefore have given the evil eye to that big yob who slumped on his chair across from me and proceeded to conduct an 100 decibel phone conversation all the way from Tottenham Hale to Harlow Town. All I did was tut a couple of times which he took massive exception to. Hey ho.
On the subject of festive spirit this very timely email has just arrived on my screen. I had just topped up my tepid cup of coffee left over from the morning meeting with some hot water and was feeling like a nibble of chocolate.
Wishing to thank the kind person who had come to the rescue I asked our Japanese desk assistant whose birthday it was……
“Jesus” came the reply leaving me shame faced as per usual.
Oh and while I’m feeling a bit sheepish did you spot this new initiative from Japan? It’s called “Premium Friday”. A proposal from METI and industry groups that starting February 24th next year companies should insist that employees should knock off at 3pm on the last Friday of each month….I know it’s only the 16th but pip pip.
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