Archive for May, 2010
What should you give the bride and groom?
May 5th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
In the UK, it’s usual for the bride and groom to prepare a list of domestic items of varying cost that they would like friends – and especially guests at the wedding – to purchase for them. This has now become so organised that usually the list is accessible online and often associated with a […]
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Speaking about the war
May 5th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
My wife Vee is a twin and her twin sister Mari is a member of the Bognor Hotham Rotary Club. Months ago, Mari suggested to the Club that I speak about their father, who was a night fighter ace in the Second World War, since I wrote a biography of him which was published in […]
Posted in History | Comments (0)
My Ofcom interview
May 4th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
As a member of the Communications Consumer Panel which is based in the communications regulator Ofcom, I’ve just been invited to complete some interview questions for a piece on the Ofcom intranet. I though that I would share it with you. Where did you spend your last holiday and what was great/bad about it? My […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (3)
What I fear; what I hope
May 3rd, 2010 by Roger Darlington
This week the British go to the polls in a General Election – the 11th in which I have been a voter. What I fear David Cameron pulls off a Conservative victory with a very small overall majority or a sufficient number of seats short of an overall majority that he decides to rule alone […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (1)
Ever heard of wabi-sabi?
May 2nd, 2010 by Roger Darlington
I recently came across a new phrase: wabi-wabi. It’s a wonderful concept that has been defined as follows: “Pared down to its barest essence, wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It’s simple, slow, and uncluttered-and it reveres […]
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
China trip (4): Wuhan & Yichang
May 1st, 2010 by Roger Darlington
I’ve now written up for my web site an account of the fourth stage of our three-week trip to China. This covers our time in Wuhan and Yichang and you can read it here.
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
My (Labour Party) parliamentary candidate
May 1st, 2010 by Roger Darlington
For the British General Election, I am a voter in the constituency of Brent North. When we first moved here in 1984, it was a Conservative seat. Since 1997, it has been Labour and the Member of Parliament has been Barry Gardiner. He’s been a very good constituency MP, although he didn’t have a brilliant […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)