There will be quietude in these parts for a couple of weeks. Don't be alarmed, as the usual noise will resume in due course.

"Can't manage it, no space and tomorrow is worse, the book is totally full", the trainee hairdresser/receptionist at the school told me, when I attempted a last minute booking for a hair treatment.

Words are interesting; the way vocabulary develops, how it changes in practice and use and how communication evolves in time, all these features are fascinating.  Language is certainly a dynamic force.  Language use can identify a cultural shift and an epoch in which a style might have been in use. Even a little  phrase can indicate so many things.

For example, today a foreign student asked if I could help with her English, an interpretation of a phrase. The dictionary was not providing any kind of useful insight with the context in question. The text was about celebrating mothers' day.  A man had visited a flower shop and decided to ... wire his mother some flowers.

It is no surprise to me that the student could not find a contextual interpretation.

I thought more about the question afterwards.  It is a terminology of its time, moved out of its time and its original context,like so much of our vocabulary is.  In addition, the term used is American English.

Our vocabulary is rich in meanings. It's what gives our language the subtlety and varied nuances that it has. The noun, 'wire', is no different. Just to add to the richness, let us not forget that it has also been turned into an infinitive of a verb, 'to wire' which, takes us back to where the problem of comprehension started.

Would you know it, the day I absolutely have to stay in and clear the decks with all sorts of important stuff, following a bank holiday, the weather is fabulous. The stiff breeze is warm and when I do put my head out the door, very briefly, (it is to do with the important stuff, honest) I find I am over-dressed, I am actually, too warm!

Discipline is called for, it is tempting to stay out, but no, I manage to stay focussed and go back home to complete the tasks. It means that when I do go out again I can stay out just a short time, no longer, as the evening meal will be wanted. Truth to say, I am peckish and want to eat something.

Going into a food store feeling hungry is not a good idea. The store helps me out. Most of the fresh produce is so well picked over, that much of what I want is out of stock.

I have a shared moan with someone who has been stuck in an office on this glorious day, then I go home. During our meal, I suggest that later we go out for a walk together. We do. And I am glad we did.

Even I have to admit that it has been a glorious day here. There has been an Easterly wind which kept the temperatures down a good bit. I went out without a jacket or a cardigan for a couple of hours around lunch time, but after that, it really was essential to put another layer around the shoulders. There were lots of determined hardy souls who were going to get those white sun starved arms exposed to the weather, just as long as they could stand the chill level.

Tonight, it is still wonderfully bright,just like during the day, in fact, it is superb. It is a lovely evening for a gentle stroll with the sunglasses on.
                                  

You'd have an interesting answer to the question "What did you do on your birthday?" Hubby said. Well, yes, I suppose I would. Here's how the answer would go.

This year, a large part of my birthday morning was spent travelling twenty miles to, and sitting in, our local hospital's Accident and Emergency Unit. In the cubicle, the nurse did a very careful triage of the problem, at which time I noticed things that had passed me by. We had a chat about the development of the medical problem. A doctor was called.

While waiting for the doctor, nurse made us comfortable in a waiting area with good chairs, a T.V. (not that we watched anything) and a 'customer' coffee machine. Hubby searched for change and bought us both coffees.

Nurse reappeared to to check her colouring-in of my problem presentation. One slight alteration, a flourish of shading and she was ready for a presentation.

Back in the cubicle, the young doctor introduced himself and asked me if I had been losing weight!? (I didn't know him from Adam and I wish...) There was a bit of prodding about and I made a suitable number intakes of breath, ouches and winces, These were followed by a brief discussion about the diagnosis. Doc. then gave me self-medicating instructions and said if things were no better within 48 hours I was to visit my own GP. Out of his earshot, nurse instructed that if things were no better in two days, I was to return to the hospital. "Why?" "Because," she said, "you might need intravenous treatment."

As we left, Nurse wished me a happy birthday.