"Signs of the Times" - Help me, Ronda

17 Jan

17Jan

I recently wrote a piece on the subject of interesting quotes and sayings, advice and jokes which appear on fridge magnets, beermats, diaries and greetings cards.

I thought it would be fun to write about my "Baker's Dozen" (13).

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Advice on life and marriage

This wise poem by Wilferd A Peterson was read at our wedding in Maulbronn Abbey, Germany.

It was a bi-lingual service and the poem was read by my brother Simon.

I had read the same piece at his wedding to Marilyn in 2006.

As an interesting footnote, Hermann Hesse, later the author of "Steppenwolf", the novel (not the rock group!), was a pupil at the boarding school here.

This is very witty, and possibly true.

Look at me and Rita!

I love this one! Scrabble makes you feel a lot younger than you actually are!

Beermats, etc

[Pinterest]

One of my favourite quotes of all time ..... and oh, so true!

That's why I love "The Simpsons". Creator Matt Groening and his fellow scriptwriters "hit the nail on the head" so often.

This essential tool for beer drinkers, a bottle opener, is also an attractive fridge magnet. In our house it is stuck to the door of the beer fridge. Of course ..... where else?

Diaries, greetings and postcards

This heartfelt message was posted on the Whitelock family app on New Year's Eve. Very early, but why not?

This was the message on the cover of a recipe book which I gave my wife Rita for Christmas.

This is a travel diary I gave myself for Christmas this year. I hope to use it often.

My "bucket list" for 2026 consists mainly of places I want to travel to. These include Budapest (Hungary); Canada; Cuba; Galicia (Spain); possibly New Zealand; Peru; and Poland.

Plus a few places I've been to but Rita has not, eg Barcelona (Spain); Cardiff (Wales); Dublin (Ireland); Paris (France); and Prague (Czech Republic).

I've just added Greenland. I want to visit before it becomes the 51st state of the USA!

Fridge magnets

I am European. The day in 2016 when the British electorate voted for Brexit was one of the worst days of my life.

And now we've all seen what a disaster that turned out to be under the Tories.

At least UK prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has taken us closer to the European Union since he came to power.

Let's hope we rejoin at some point.

A hot dog from time to time is a good thing. Not healthy, but comfort food, especially with a tasty sauce like HP or barbecued tomato.

I had a vegan sausage hot dog today, for a change. It was very tasty, but the consistency was odd.

Freshly ground coffee is a must. After my two early morning cups of English Breakfast tea, it's coffee time at Villa Indiana.

We grind our own beans, espresso, and perk them in our rather splendid "De Longhi" cafetera.

Here are two fridge magnets in Spanish that I like. From the local China shop, I think.

"The best grandparents in the world".

I like being a grandad. I have eight grandkids: four English grandsons; and three grand-daughters and a grandson on the German side of the family. The oldest, Anton, is 20; the youngest, Buckley, is two.