Edition 73: "Letter in a bottle..."

Good Evening Negative Soundbyters - warm, sunfilled greetings to you all! I am back in my eerie overlooking my postage stamp (which is in the throes of being converted into an "all weather" stamp - artificial turf to the fore) and those of my neighbours. It is not quite the rolling hills and luscious landscapes that I had the pleasure of taking inspiration from last week; it's more urban, more "street"...um ja Hoddy, you live in a well proportioned semi detached Victorian house with an artificial lawn, what on earth would you know about "street"?

Talking of streets, I was just about to head out for a run last week when I had the pleasure of discovering our car's passenger window on the sidewalk shattered in about a quidrillion pieces. I reasoned based on my Sherlock Holmes powers-of-deduction that some little...whoah easy Hoddy...family blog remember...that some errant little mother....Hoddy!...ok...that some cheery little soul had decided to put a brick through our car window in case I had accidentally left my iPhone or my Swiss watch or my Mont Blanc wallet stuffed with a £1,000 in the glove compartment. I mean really? And to add insult to injury there was a perfectly decent BMW parked directly behind ours that remained unscathed. Not that I would wish this on a fellow citizen but still....!

So Mrs H and I set to work with the handheld Dyson, the hoover and various brushes and fastidiously bagged all quidrillion of those tiny glass fragments. Rafe's car seat was in the line of fire and you can just imagine his thought process....ah what's this shiny object...let me put it in my mouth and see. Once we had finished not even Mr Holmes himself would have worked out what had ocurred that fateful Saturday evening other than for the black bin bag taped into place as a modicum of protection against the elements!

They say things happen in three's....

I am not on my usual scribbler this evening as my own machine is sitting in a workshop being tended to by a very measured Apple technician who raised a Mrs H style eyebrow when I told him how it got damaged.

We had returned home from the wedding and I was unpacking my toiletry bag when I noticed that the lid on my mouthwash had not been fastened properly and the bottle was now empty. What I needed Sherlock for was that I could find no evidence of it having leaked. Yes my shaving cream can and tooth brush were a bit sticky and the my day pack smelt a bit minty, but otherwise A-ok.

That's until I tried turning my Mac on. Dr Watson...any ideas?

It crackled a bit and I could have sworn I heard a sizzle coming from the place where the power cord is plugged in. It asked for my password which it then proceeded to fill in itself. And then blank screen - nada, nothing, no loading Apple sign, zero, zilch. D-E-A-D. As the Apple technician helpfully pointed out to me; sugar is apparently a conductor of electricity so combining mouth wash and computer circuitry magnifies the problem even more!

When I explained to Mrs H that my laptop had journeyed together with my toiletry bag and had absorbed most of the mouth wash fallout (I am allocated only hand luggage when we travel now) I got short shrift..."who packs that way...?"

The third is still lurking out there....heaven help me, Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson!

Big Love

Hoddy X

I wonder whether you would indulge me for a moment....

As some of you know I did a course run by an organisation called Escape The City. I had decided that I needed a break after my last job and I wanted to use that time to reflect on some of the "softer" aspects of life. In true accountant-style I felt I needed to approach this in a structured manner. "Hey dude here's some structure - smoke a doobie, learn how to play the guitar and go and weave baskets on a beach in Thailand! Far out." While that had certain appeal, I am not sure Mrs H would have agreed....other than possibly to a sunlounger, a Thai beach resort and a flute of bubbles!

I found it an inspirational experience and now-and-then I page back through some of the material to remind myself that I did some growing up during those few months. I came across a photo of me as a toddler and the accompanying letter that we were asked to write to our younger selves.

This was before I had Rafe but reading it now, it might as well be addressed to him...should he ever read the 73rd edition of the Negative Soundbyte...

Dear Rafe
Dont be afraid my little man. Hang on to your lightness, your laughter, your enquiring mind, your fearlessness, your love.
Try not to let the world dictate to you how you should live and be.
Embrace the essence of your true self.
Surround yourself with people who bring out the best in you, who make the most of you as "you".
Be brave, be courageous - but be gentle and kind to yourself.
Always question, don't accept things at face value.
Treat people as your equals and as you would expect to be treated.
Take some calculated risks; they will bring out the best in you and show you what life is really like.
I love you.
Your papa.
Christopher

I know this is a departure from my usual format and a little more serious than usual but you have stuck with me for over 18 months so I am sure you will forgive me...back with a vengeance next week.

OUT :)

Pic of the Week

Eye of the dragon...!