Yesterday I awoke to a temperature of -5° and this was predicted to rise to just above freezing in the course of the day. A day or so ago, I ordered a couple of hot water bottles and they arrived in the evening and were promptly pressed into use. There is an area at the foot of the bed where the electric blanket does not reach so these hot water bottles proved to be especially welcome. Conscious of the fact that that, as the Scandinavians say, ‘there is not bad weather, only inappropriate clothing’ so I took the opportunity to wear my recently acquired warm winter shirt, a thin jumper as well as a thick jumper and an extra pair of socks (which I just put on when I go out of doors) It looks as though for the rest of this week and probably next week, the cold weather will continue but very slightly less cold than in the last day or so – but the possibility increases of snow across the Midlands although so far it has seemed too cold to snow. The political news seems just as bleak to most observers. Donald Trump has announced that he is very serious about acquiring Greenland but whether he intends to just march in or to formerly annex the territory as the 51st American state is unclear. The new Trump doctrine is that America ‘needs’ Greenland by which is meant access to rare earths and minerals. Greenland possesses vast, largely untapped reserves of rare earths and critical minerals like lithium, cobalt, niobium, and zirconium, making it a significant potential supplier for green energy tech, electronics, and defence, though development faces logistical challenges and political complexities, including debates over mining’s environmental impact. Its geology holds substantial deposits, notably at Tanbreez and Kvanefjeld, attracting international interest as the West seeks alternatives to China for these vital resources. The reaction of the rest of Europe to these latest Trump announcements has been muted and certainly not the outright and forthright condemnation which one would have thought is the natural response. Some analysts are saying that this all spells the end of Nato because an alliance can hardly be said to exist if one partner (USA) just seizes the territory of another. One is tempted to sat that the Europeans are playing a long tactical game and are awaiting the demise of Trump in the form of ill-health or political opposition in the USA itself but this hope may be a vain one as there is likelihood that any successor to Trump such as J D Vance the Vice-President will happily continue with these Trump policies. Meanwhile, Putin in Russia must be rubbing his hands in glee as he seems to have been given the green light to walk all over Ukraine and the Baltic states and the Chinese will surely choose their moment to fulfil their own territorial ambitions. The Chinese may be waiting for the day when the USA takes over Greenland (if it does) as the attention of the world may be distracted and what a wonderful opportunity to take over Taiwan. Now that we are in the first full week of January, people across the country are taking down their decorations and I am going to seize the opportunity to do the same with the assistance of our domestic help who, hopefully, will battle through in the face of the bad weather.
I was absolutely delighted that with the assistance of my domestic help, I now have all of the Christmas decorations taken down. Normally, the house appears incredibly bare for the first few hours or day or so after decorations are down but a lot less so on this particular occasion – perhaps the couple of captain’s chairs that I have facing each other and together with the wonderful family chest-cum-heirloom which cane from my father’s house (via my sister) have restored a feeling of normality to our hall. All of the decorations are neatly bundled up and although I removed them from the loft on my own, putting them back is a little trickier so I will reply upon my son’s assistance to do that in the morning. I did go to the Pilates session in the middle of the day and there are five of us regulars who have attending this class for years together. But next week will be a rather sad occasion because one of our number has sold her house and is now going down to Christchurch to live near to her married daughter, all of which I quite understand and so next week will be the last occasion that we shall see her- no doubt hugs (and perhaps some tears) all round. As it was quite late and I had to make extra journeys both for bread and also to hunt out a not-sold-out copy of ‘The Times‘ I just had a quickie type lunch spreading a pate and some soft spreadable choose on two slices of my recently purchased sourdough bread. Sourdough’s special qualities come from its slow, natural fermentation using wild yeast and bacteria (a starter), giving it a unique tangy flavour, chewy texture, and making it often easier to digest, potentially gentler on blood sugar, and more nutritious by breaking down compounds like phytic acid to improve mineral absorption. Tonight, I am going to have some vegetable soup which my domestic help very thoughtfully cooked for me to save me cooking when I got home late from Pilates (which was so thoughtful of her)
I always see what is going to be on the TV to be viewed after I have had my tea and this evening is one of those occasions where there is a clash of really good programmes. There are repeats of two episodes of ‘Yes Minister’ which doubtless I have seen before but the pleasure of watching them over and over again never diminishes. Then there is a very good food programme on Channel 4. giving is the low-down on the junk food to avoid which looks interesting. There is also going to be documentary programme giving the real facts behind ‘Operation Mincemeat’ which was viewed a couple of nights ago. As this programme is transmitted at 9.00pm and I want to get into good habits of not being too late to be, I may well ensure that I am all tucked warm in bed with electric blankets and, possibly, hot water bottles so that I can watch this in bed and it does really matter if I doze off in the middle of it.