Mad Darby Diaries

 The weather is so unpredictable in the UK that the weather forecasters generally add 'a chance of rain' just to cover themselves.   It isn't just rain either, I can leave the house in the morning bathed in warm sunshine only to find myself shivering 3 hours later.  This makes the Queen's funeral even more remarkable in that the weather behaved during all the various comings and goings.  I missed the funeral as I was driving to the ferry but by all accounts it was the pageantry that was impressive.   'Put up or shut up,' Trump has been told by his own choice of special master.  The world has been  saying this for years, every time he came out with one of his absurd lies and hopefully we will soon see him marched off in handcuffs, but I shouldn't hold your breath.  Even by Trump's standards he surpassed himself yesterday when he declared that he declassified all the secret documents just by thinking about it.  Beats divine interventi...

It started with the almost never-ending election of the British Prime Minister, who was voted in by a select few.  When two days later the Queen died, I almost felt sorry for Liz Truss.  Her promise to 'hit the ground running', ran into the buffers before she could get off the starting blocks, leaving her with a list of postponed problems but probably with more sympathy and understanding than otherwise she may have received.   While she struggles with her situation it seems the world responded to the loss of 'the Queen', even Putin had some kind  words to say.  This view wasn't unanimous  though as the news of her death brought up past imperialism, inequality and possible racism.  While these points are all valid it probably isn't the best time to complain about them.  I don't know who said, 'don't blame me for the sins of my father' but it is true.  I am  sure the Queen did not purposely allow these practices to continue, it was ju...

 People watching is a fascinating pastime and in  France most of us enjoy just sitting in a café watching the world go by and observing the antics of passers-by but you don't have to be in a café.  For years I have watched numerous shoppers fill their trolleys to the brim then at the checkout they put it all on the counter.  Ok you are thinking, don't we all do that?  Correct, but I for one then put all my shopping in the bags that I have brought with me, pay for my goods and lift the bags into my car.  However there are people who, as their things pass through checkout, put them,  not  into bags, but loose back in the trolley.  Fascinated I have followed them to their cars (stalking) where they then empty the trolley either into bags in their car or more bizarrely, straight into the trunk without bagging them at all.  I am not really a stalker so I haven't actually followed them home to see how long it takes to empty  a trunk full ...