19December1995

London: 19th December 1995
My dear folks,

Here I am writing you another letter, one of the last this year. You may be grateful for this. I am aware that it is possible, theoretically, to get too many letters. I counted a moment ago when I opened the family file. It has nearly 100 DEAR FOLKS letters which have gone out to you since the start of January. That's a whole lot of letters. And I've just interrupted this one to ask the computer to count all the letters & files I've created in the word processor this year. It found 1,051. I'm quite impressed, if I say so myself. That's no mean total, especially if you were to add to it my BBC files. On my virtual tombstone (because I don't want a real one, thank you), I think I might inscribe. He wrote a lot; not all of it was rot.

How are you & what are you up to? It's five p.m. & dark, damp & cold. Widespread rain & snow are forecast. Bookies who gave good odds against a white Christmas are expected to wring their hands. I had today off after spending two agonising days "bashing the phones". It's a hell-awful job, trying to find pundits willing to get out of bed at an unholy hour in order to appear on our dawn show for a pittance. All the good ones hide behind a barrage of agents & answer-phones. Only the pressure groups, publicity seekers & the indigent leap at the opportunity. Give me honest journalism any day! I can't wait to get back on bulletins.

Still, for my sufferings I get days like today in recompense. To console me further, I have a large glass of Boschendal Estate Wine, Le Pavillon, recommended to me by the helpful & knowledgeable manager of Threshers. I took three bottles in my Christmas selection & they're easily the best of what we've tasted so far.

Buzz on the doorbell at this point from a woman who identifies herself as "The Police" and wonders if I'm the owner of the smart red Audi parked outside. Fortunately or unfortunately, I'm not. It belongs to my neighbour, Elaine. Someone, it appears, has smashed her window. Poor thing! Who needs it, especially as a Christmas present? I know the feeling well enough since the Rocket has faced the same treatment several times in the 10 years it's parked in Shirland Road. So have a great many other cars in the neighbourhood.

There was another buzz earlier from a second neighbour, Stefania, who has taken delivery of a replacement monitor for her spanking new Power Apple-Mac computer. The cardboard box in which it was packed has gone back into our eaves as she lacks the room to store it downstairs. We also needed to confer about feeding cats over Christmas. Mavis, as usual, spent most of the day in her flat. Likes his freedom, old Mavis does.

We are going to finish our packing for Germany shortly. Mum, I shall be taking over with us "from you" the trinkets you passed on to me in Johburg and which we have divided between our nieces. Cathy, I think Jones has got all the bits you ordered. The one request I cannot comply with is books for Bren. Most of our books are down in Portugal. All I have here are books on computers & cosmology, neither of which I expect to impress my brother. Please note, Brendan! Will you kindly raid the bookshop at Johburg airport for most of your holiday reading or bring other material with you. If you let me know what appeals to you, I shall gladly get you a couple of titles from London Airport as well.

Apart from this, I have bought the recent BBC production of Pride & Prejudice on videotape. It runs 5 hours in total. But I guarantee that the whole family will be riveted to the screen and suggest we make time to watch it over the Christmas weekend. I should love to see it again. Trish said she bought it recently and has watched it right through several times.