After our Saturday lie-in and pancake breakfast we walked into town as Clare had a clothes purchase she wanted to return to H&M. Then we went to John Lewis' for a soup and sandwich lunch and a browse of the tech bargains for me, and clothes for Clare. Nothing of interest, so we headed for home. The streets were very quiet but the pubs were full of rugby emitting groans of anguish as the Irish team proceeded to thrash Wales in Dublin. Ten - nil as we arrived at the bus stop, twenty nine - nil by the time I switched on the telly when we reached home. Never mind, consolation was at hand in the form of Winter Olympics coverage on a neighbouring channel, showing the most astounding performances in skateboarding, mogul downhill skiing and the ski jump. How these sports have advanced in recent decades! A perfect antidote to a dull, cold windy day in Cardiff.
Recently I learned that most of the snow on which the Winter Olympics takes place is now artificial due to climate change. You could hear it in the sound of skis moving on what is in effect crushed ice. Resorting to this calls into question future Winter Olympics, as snow production is energy consuming with a huge carbon footprint, skiing is that much more unsafe in permanently icy conditions as opposed to neige poudreuse. I fondly recall my time cross country skiing when we lived in Geneva, and for a few years after we settled in Cardiff, on January holiday breaks with Valdo in the Jura. I may never ski again not just because of advancing age, but because of the lack of snow in places we are most likely to return to visit friends. I didn't hear from Valdo at Christmas. I wonder how he is?
Sister June, frustrated with her slow Acer ES1 laptop. She's had it for about six years, and it's now under equipped to run Windows 10 at a normal speed, just like my desktop PC, which is almost as old. So, she has ordered a replacement Acer from Amazon, which should be adequate for her purposes, with a SSD and 8GB of RAM - the new standard specification for useful basic equipment running Windows 10. I think it uses Windows S, which may mean having to pay to install Libre Office, which is what she is used to, rather than subscribe to MS Word, which is far more than she would ever need to use. One of the team at the Boys' Club across the road from her place has promised to help her set it up. I hope this'll work out OK, and not leave her in a position where yet again changes in user interface cause more grief than any 87 year old needs.
I spent the evening scanning a batch of photo negatives of the trip to Umeå Clare made with Owain at Christmas in 1987 (I think). It was one of those experiences of a lifetime, and introduction for the both of them to cross country skiing on rural wooden skis. I stayed home with Kath and Rachel and the three of us did Christmas with the occasional landline call to the Arctic circle. We were living in Chepstow then and I was working for USPG. My ministerial services weren't in strong demand at major festivals so I could take time out with my two teenage girls. The photos aren't great, shot on a pocket camera with films that weren't fast enough. Even so, it's a lovely souvenir of those days, half a lifetime away.
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