doing one thing really thoroughly

The Book Club wasn’t so bad.

We used a clever App.

I could see all the other people in little windows on the screen.

At first Ellie was in the main window, and then when someone else spoke, they took centre stage.

Including me, when I introduced my book.

The only awkward thing was that Ellie had reminded me that I’d be on camera, so I’d put on a shirt and tie.

But I hadn’t realised that my surroundings would also be visible.

Everyone else had bookshelves or smart furniture or lovely gardens behind them.

I’m sorry to say that I had got comfortable on a pile of sheets and clothes and things.

I hope everyone was so interested in what I was saying about “The Bike Lesson” that they won’t have noticed the background.

All the books sounded interesting.

I decided to do a lot more reading from now on.

The topic for the next meeting is lighthouses.

It was Gibbs’s idea.

Ellie said that “Tim to the Lighthouse” shows a narrow, stereotyped, image of the girl character.

Gibbs pointed out that it shows quite a poor image of humans altogether, trying to wreck each other’s boats, and sorting out problems by fighting, and he said can’t we just enjoy the good points of the book, while bearing its imperfections in mind.

I have a book about lighthouses, which I’ve never read because it’s so big.

I don’t think there’s any fighting in it, but there may be some disasters.

I’ll get it out and make a start on it.

But not today.

Today I’ve decided that I won’t try to get a whole long list of things done.

I’ll just choose one task, and by the end of the day I shall have done it.

Of course there are some little things that have to be done every day.

I must check on the bean.

That looks like progress! It seems to have recovered from its loop.

I’ll do my yoga, to get limbered up for the task ahead, and I’m not going to give up eating.

Apart from that, it’s just the one thing.

Teddy made me realise that I need to have more Activities.

He’s practising his spoonophone, and making bread, and doing matchstick modelling, and learning French on an App.

(You can hear his spoonophone on the Zoom Ensemble page.

But I’m afraid you can’t try the bread, and he says he hasn’t got very far with the matchsticks yet. It’s difficult because no one uses matches much these days.)

He said I have to give my brain some exercise.

So today is my day for deciding.

I’ll put on my superpower t-shirt. And a foreign-language badge.

First I’ll get the App that Teddy told me about.

I’ve decided to learn Swiss, so that I can talk to the cuckoos in the cuckoo clock.

My great grandfather brought them and the clock over from Switzerland in the fifties.

We’ve often had a chat when I wind the clock in the spring, but not with actual words.

They still don’t speak any English. And I don’t speak any Swiss.

Perhaps I haven’t been making enough of an effort to get to know them.

But I can’t find Swiss in the list of languages on the App.

I’ll ring Teddy.

Oh. Lopsy’s answered the phone.

I’d forgotten that it was Lopsy’s turn to phone Bimbo.

We agreed to take turns, so that he wouldn’t have to keep answering the phone.

I called out to the cuckoos, in French, and German, and Italian, and Romansh.

But they didn’t answer.

So perhaps they don’t speak any of those languages.

What can I do to show them I’m glad that they’re here?

I’ll make them something nice to eat.

It needs to be either from their culture, or typically British.

I don’t have any Swiss cheese.

I’ll make scones.

But scones need Cornish Clotted Cream. I haven’t got any of that.

And the cuckoos may be vegan anyway.

I’ll use mashed potatoes instead. That’s very British.

It will be just as good as cream.

Luckily I do have potatoes.

Better be careful with this sharp scraper.

Lots of marge, plenty of salt.

This is going to be good.

Now for the scones themselves.

A good squidgey dough. It looks like more mashed potatoes, but it’s not.

While the scones are cooking, I’ll look for the jam.

Bunce and Snowy made some strawberry jam last summer.

That will be perfect.

I never know which goes on first, the cream or the jam.

I’ll try both ways.

And should they be open, or sandwiched together?

The small cuckoo has quite a tiny beak, so I’ll leave them in halves.

Now to get cleaned up, and take the scones up to the cuckoos.

I’ve found a handy way to carry the plate,

but I don’t think I can climb up the chains with it.

Better build a tower.

I’ve never tried to carry anything up here before.

I hope they like the scones.

Well, they liked them slightly.

I think they understood that I was trying to be friendly.

But I’ve thought of another way to communicate with them.

I have a cuckoo whistle.

Today I’ll practise on that, instead of on the triangle.

I’m aiming for a gentle woody tone.

Now we can have a conversation.

But that doesn’t settle the question of what language I’m going to learn.

So unfortunately I haven’t quite achieved even one thing today.