Dec. 11
Today’s tea was Darjeeling Afternoon, which, full admission, we drank in the morning.
An excellent choice, because this black tea is wonderful for productivity. We’ve done al lthe Christmas cards, posted several parcels, sorted everyone’s gifts, and did battle with the fleas. They thoughtfully showed up in September, and even though it’s December and it’s the world’s mildest infestation, they refuse to die. The cat is unamused. We’re unimpressed. The dogs don’t even notice.
We ran out of Darjeeling Afternoon by four o’clock, so we switched to a Harrods’ Christmas bend courtesy of a friend. Also a lovely tea. We drank it while writing the Christmas cards.
Along the way, we battled the customs form for Canada post. Did you know it’s now impossible to fill one in in person? Neither did we. It’s great. The form won’t do large-print and it willfully infilled misinformation that we weren’t allowed to change. Canada Post, in the unlikely event you’re reading, take note: This violates the Ontario Disabilities Act. You’re supposed to have options for your partially-sighted users that accommodate us. And, you know, maybe accommodate the little granny types who don’t want to fill the form in online while you’re at it. It’s not hard. There are lots of people who have valid reasons for not filling this stupid customs thing in online. And it’s not like it saved us any time, because the woman at the post office had to correct the willfully mistyped stuff that I couldn’t correct (there is no Toronto in Germany, autofill!), but she still had to input all the info!
So, who does this help? Not us. Not the postal workers. But it does actively discriminate against great sections of Canadians trying to send their Christmas parcels! Huzzah! Sort it, guys.
Sorry. We didn’t mean to read you the accessibility riot act. Please have some light verse in compensation. No one writes it like Wendy Cope.
The Orange
Wendy Cope
At lunchtime I bought a huge orange—
The size of it made us all laugh.
I peeled it and shared it with Robert and Dave—
They got quarters and I had a half.
And that orange, it made me so happy,
As ordinary things often do
Just lately. The shopping. A walk in the park.
This is peace and contentment. It’s new.
The rest of the day was quite easy.
I did all the jobs on my list
And enjoyed them and had some time over.
I love you. I’m glad I exist.
