Modern times

Having seen the quality and prices of new dining room furniture, we've almost arrived at the conclusion that there's nothing much the matter with second-hand shabby chic, though it could do with a bit of elbow grease.  The table, which cost me £45 second-hand in 1980, could do with a polish, and the upholstery could benefit from a visit from my whizzo new steam thingy.  Part of the motivation is to get rid of a couple of very tired corner cupboards that the parents got from 'Auntie' Phyllis back in the early 1960s.  We have a few bits and pieces that it would be nice to keep on display, but the last few years in the conservatory have taken their toll on the already rather sad cupboards.  We'd toyed with replacing the glazed bit with a dresser in the dining room, but since the room is around 3m x 4m, we're starting to conclude that it would be a bit overpowering.  Martyn for his part has a murderous eye on an old hi-fi housing, the contents of which are no longer working, probably also because of the extreme temperature range in the sitooterie.  The speakers will shortly migrate to Lagrasse once again, the cabinet and electronics to le dump.

Nice evening yesterday at the Assembly Hall for the Mayor's annual quiz.  A few of us beaks and other halves for the time being go along for a rather boozy evening of quizzing each year.  We finished last night slightly higher up the league table than in the past, though a long way behind our target, which is to beat our MP and his team of Commons researchers.  Their advantage is age, I think: we've improved our performance by drafting in the parents of a few recent graduates, but are still nowhere near.  Interesting that the quizmaster now announces at the beginning that any team seen using a mobile phone will have its score for the round in question disallowed: o tempora, o mores.  We had an inkling a few years ago that this was the secret of the win by a certain team whose leader I congratulated on our next meeting through gritted teeth.  But WTF, as one seems to be allowed to write in public these days [v. supra]: it's only a game!