I kind of hit on this theme yesterday but thought I would develop it a bit for today's blog.
When you are young the world seems to be your Oyster (or Lobester as some would say). You can look at things in chunks of five years. In five years time I want to be earning x, in five years time I want to have a better job, in 10 years time I want to have achieved y.
Often at interviews we used to ask questions like: "where do you see yourself in 10 years time?" Ridiculously candidates got marked down if they said something like "still teaching at this school." We were looking for ridiculous answers like "I see myself as a millionaire and Prime Minister."
Then as you get older you stop thinking about where you would like to be in five years' time and the onus is put on family and others and not on personal gain.
Then one day you wake up and you are what was once termed an old age pensioner although you don't feel old or a pensioner. Then the answer to the question becomes an easy one - "still breathing."
So no longer are there huge aims. And you are left to reflect on matters such as "have I achieved everything I wanted to achieve in life?" And of course it's good if the answer is no because that leaves things still to be achieved. So get on with achieving them.
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Last night I started to listen to an audio book by Suze Rotolo. Who I hear you ask? Suze was one of the first girlfriends of Bob Dylan and she has written about her times with Dylan and in Greenwich Village in New York and the folk music scene there in the 1960s. Dylan has acknowledged the part she played in his early music and she appears with him on the album cover for the LP "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan." The last time we were in New York we visited Greenwich Village and Washington Park/Square to try and get the vibes of the 1960s. Didn't quite work but at least we can say that we have visited the area.
So when I had listened to a couple of chapters of the book I decided to listen to some of the early American folk music and that took me to start with John Lee Hooker (admittedly a blues singer- but he is really the starting point of the book because Greenwich Village was originally full of blues and jazz cafes before they turned to folk. Much in the same way that the Cavern Club in Liverpool was a jazz venue before the Beatles and Merseybeat came along).
After John Lee Hooker, I moved to Woody Guthrie and then Pete Seeger via The Weavers, the Kingston Trio and the Cumberland Three
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Now to village matters. I may have mentioned in a previous blog plans to build a care village in Hethersett. It's pure madness. I'm not referring to the idea of a care village which I have nothing against at all. I am referring to the pressure this will put on facilities that are already beyond breaking point.
The applicants will be presenting their plans to Hethersett Parish Council's planning committee in Hethersett Village Hall on Monday at 6.30 pm. I hope anyone fighting to get improved facilities for our village will attend to hear about the plans and to support increased facilities in the village.
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Finally today - anyone for tennis?
I belong to a friendly group and we play at Eaton Park on Thursday mornings from 10 am until about 12. We vary in ability and are looking for a few more players to join us. We usually book two courts but we have plenty of place for anyone of any standard who would like to join us.
Please contact me on [email protected] if you are interested.