Friday, January 31, 2014

Poetry, tiny triumph and leisure time.

1. While Bettany is napping I show Alec some films of Michael Rosen reading his own poems. He laughs out loud at Don't -- which I like very much because I remember Uncle Robert almost laughing himself into an asthma attack at the same poem as a small boy; and at My Brother is on the Floor Roaring. Michael Rosen's delivery is tremendous, but I wonder if Alec is laughing, too, because the scenarios and sentiments are so familiar.

2. It's very hard to gauge Alec's appetite and I often end up scraping lots of his food into the bin. Today he eats the lot and looks around for more. It's such a banal victory, but exactly the sort of thing I have to enjoy if I'm going to get through the day.

3. To drink a glass of wine and do a jigsaw with my husband.

Escape, tulips and samosa.

1. This morning, I'm piling into a car with friends to escape into the Weald, where we will visit a garden planted with 45,000 tulips. 2...