They forgot Jeremy Bentham’s body.

Batten down the hatches too.

It’s ok, but it monkeys around with the plot to an annoying degree.

Anything by Emma St John Mandel. I started with The Singers Gun, but probably enjoyed Station Eleven most. It was made into a series by HBO - I’m in “the book was better” camp. The Glass Hotel is also good, and Sea of Tranquility. A quirk is that various characters pop up or are referenced in different novels.

China Mieville is another writer I like a lot. I read most of his steampunk novels - Perdido Street Station and The Scar stand out. But my favourite was Embassytown, which is basically about language.

You are welcome in my house with that kedgeree! One of my fave comfort dishes.

None of these has a layer of grated cheddar on top that’s gone all brown and delicious in the oven. You start with a very buttery roux while the macaroni elbows are cooking. Make a super cheesy sauce with a spoon of mustard in it, using full cream milk. Drain the macaroni, add the sauce, and pile it into a buttered oven proof dish. Cover with that layer of cheese. Slide it into the preheated oven and distract yourself somehow for ten or fifteen minutes. (I mean, you could use that time to make a salad but who are we kidding.)

So good.

My local small supermarket (Co-op) has a “donate to charity” button. Fuck that! I choose my donations thankyouverymuch. And I am pretty generous.

If you really want to horrify yourself, try shining a UV torch around your bathroom.

Is that the one in the airport? It’s fantastic.

Greetings cards predate Hallmark by quite a lot.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greeting_card

≽^•⩊•≼

About you We haven’t saved anything yet.

Phew.

Yes Mr Karp, I think you’re the village idiot. Next question.

It’s the same as with people dating at any age. Is the new partner a good person? Are there any red flags? In the end though, adults make their own choices. It really is none of your business - and I say that as kindly as possible.

I’m thrilled for them. It’s great to see my stepfather so happy. He was a really good husband to my mum.

I met someone once who had “invested” in these. Like, thousands of pounds. He thought he was super clever, talked down to us because we were so far out of the loop. I do wonder what happened to him. Poor guy.

My mother remarried later in life. She met my stepfather at a widow and widowers club and they were together for about 30 years before she died. He recently married again at the age of 92. He was younger than my mother, but his new wife is younger than him, at 70. She’s younger than me! They met through church, I believe.

That’s the key I think - meeting in person, through social clubs and activities or hobbies.

Hard agree.

Port is left (and red, same as port wine) - both words have the same number of letters. Starboard is right (and green). But that’s from the cox’s viewpoint - for us rowers, facing the cox, port is on the right. Does my head in every time.

It’s a trap!!!