Life

Low life

Literary intercourse

A Christian acquaintance sends me a typed newsletter once a month. She lives ‘by faith’ (no job) and at the end of her newsletters always invites me to contribute to her ministry either with my prayers or with a cheque. This month she praised God for a serious illness, which she thinks brought her closer

More from life

Your Problems Solved | 7 September 2002

Dear Mary… Q. For years I have suffered embarrassment at the hands of my father’s gluttony – specifically his habit of ordering an entire pint of ice cream when we go out, enough to satisfy an entire family, and devouring it at the gelato shop in front of judgmental eyes obviously disgusted by the display.

Living dangerously

The fashion folk are upon us again. The other day I was reading a list of so-called must-have fashion items in one of the newspapers. These included a Matthew Williamson evening dress, costing over £1,000 and resembling a tea towel. Other indispensables were a Chloe bag at £720, which looked as if someone had peed

Mind your language

Mind Your Language | 7 September 2002

Mind your language ‘Coo, coo, coo,’ said my husband. ‘Like a pigeon.’ This was not, fortunately, a command, though, heaven knows, it might have been. He was merely giving his opinion, fairly strongly, on how the first syllable of cupola should be pronounced. The next two, he said, should sound like ‘po’ and ‘la’. It