Tag Archives: mother

Unqualified medical advice in Stockton-on-Tees (Rousse)

Posted on April 18, 2021 by Dreamaticus

My mother lived happily alone above a pharmacy in Stockton-on-Tees. Our only worry was that she was offering medical advice to her visitors. This was on account of her proximity to the drug dispensary. We told everyone to ignore her.

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The draw of Guatemala (Rousse)

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Dreamaticus

The garden of my great-grandparents’ house was crammed with people I knew, from TPR’s sunbathing ex-colleagues to my board gaming PhD students. The latter group was my target. I promised them the full experience of the mess and quirkiness of … Continue reading →

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Cake, china cabinets, and Charles Dickens (Rousse)

Posted on March 31, 2021 by Dreamaticus

When LM and I returned to campus, we were shocked at the neglect that it had suffered in the past year. We hoped that the new students would not be disappointed with their choice of university. Whatever their opinion of … Continue reading →

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London to Oxford and Oxford to Edinburgh by train (Rousse)

Posted on February 21, 2021 by Dreamaticus

It really was too much to ask my 81 year-old mother to walk all the way from London to Edinburgh, so I suggested that we cut a few miles off the route by taking the train to Oxford. In the … Continue reading →

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Free trial liposuction, force-fed kipper, and ferocious wolves (Rousse)

Posted on January 29, 2021 by Dreamaticus

I was disgusted at the rope of white marshmallow-like goo extracted from my midriff by the white-uniformed beautician. My first experience of liposuction was definitely going to be my last. I asked the beautician to stop my free trail, gathered … Continue reading →

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Expensive Scottish border sandwiches, sandals, and snow (Rousse)

Posted on January 19, 2021 by Dreamaticus

As we crossed the border at Carter Bar, I calculated that we would reach my mother’s house around 4pm. By this time my passengers would be rather hungry. I would not take any chances on the stock of my mother’s … Continue reading →

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An unintentional insult (Rousse)

Posted on October 11, 2020 by Dreamaticus

Through the car window, I thought that I saw KA wearing a long thin pale yellow jumper dress in the new deli in Hexham. I parked nearby and walked back along the road to the shop. Sure enough it was … Continue reading →

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Abusive parental role play (Rousse)

Posted on September 6, 2020 by Dreamaticus

This was not my best idea for a bonding exercise: find a partner; allocate the roles of mother and daughter; perform role play on the basis that the parent hates the child.

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A family drive along the south coast (Rousse)

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Dreamaticus

With my mother at the wheel, and all three sisters on the back seat with Baby Ted and my panda, we drove along the south coast of England. ‘Is that the Isle of Wight?’ I asked, pointing to a beautiful, … Continue reading →

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A (possibly) dead husband and a stolen Christmas parcel (Rousse)

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Dreamaticus

Life had been difficult since TPR died of cancer, but I resolved to lead as ‘normal’ a life as possible, and went to work as usual. I needed to tell the powers that be that the arrangement for collecting deliveries … Continue reading →

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