HAMPTON: "Tipsy with the numbers, yet he found the smoking gun," PLInkletter notes, "and no blood money, against death before old age, a living doll."

Be all that as it may, meanwhile:

'In other news…'

28^th October 2010

Thursday: What a wonderful day! Way too tired, I forced myself up, having been working on another edit of 'Man's Best Friends' aka 'After the Rain' in the wee smalls, after Baby Peggletter kindly gave me a whole hour and a half of critiquing advice by phone till after midnight last night. I set to and applied the majority of his suggestions, which were really helpful.

Janny had organised the local Mormon elders to wash our car, bless their cotton socks, and so at about ten Elders Tindel and Weber duly arrived and did so. We enjoyed a lunch with them later, and they left with a small mountain of goodies that Janny created in the kitchen. (A huge proportion of the billions of long termer daily visitors to Fool's Paradise – Infinity on a Shoestring could be forgiven for thinking that we or Janny are/is /a Mormon/s, but if so, they'd be mistaken. We simply have no fear of any sincere religionists, while holding no allegiance to any particular flavour. Myself, I am known for being a cherry picker among the orchard that is organised religion, while delighting in hiking among the breathtaking mountains of non-organised religion, feasting upon the abundance within the invisible realm of the spiritual economy.)

Before the elders arrived Baby Inkletter arrived, and spent till mid afternoon with us, which was a blessing.

And shortly after the elders left there was knock on the door, and lo and behold none other than Reeve Chocson, a geek bearing gifts: four potted Herb Robert plants, their bitter little leaves bobbing about in excitement at coming to a new home.

Now to apprehend one Reeve Chocson, alone and free of his little green bag, dear and matchless though she is (like all wives, Chocci keeps Reeve on a shorter leash than he would choose), is an opportunity too good to pass, so we lured him in with a cocoa made the way it should be, Lindt chocolate of two flavours, and several sweet baked offerings from the oven of my irreplaceable affectionate pretty tailed Jayne Coon, the greatest cook in the southern hemisphere. For those wondering, that title for the northern hemisphere is held by one Cumbrian known as Gladys Hobson, not known as 'slick cook-draw McHobson-Graw' for nothing.

Reeve remarked today that he has scientifically proven that he gains about one kilogram after every visit to our place.

The More O’Kerry (O’Brien) Volume: I greatly enjoyed Kerry O'Brien's interview with James Wolfensohn this evening on The 7.30 Report. Both men presented themselves with an excellent sartorial aura – old men can look so damn good! (And I am firmly rooted in the heterosexual camp, mind you.)

Mr Wolfensohn has a wonderful clean and precise manner of expression, and he used this talent as he explained his side of his work as special envoy for Gaza disengagement for the Quartet on the Middle East.

He also gave a brief negative but doubtless close to the mark assessment of the current economic woes of the United States. I don't share his "enormous faith" in one of several things he mentioned, namely the "university system", but I won't give up hope in it yet. Throughout the Western World it can turn out experts in narrow fields, but is still failing badly at producing balanced sensible broadscoped global citizens.

I could not stay awake after 8, but of course once in bed it took me ages to fall asleep. And of course, I was awake a few hours later, and back, insomniac that I've become, writing, reading, titivating about, walking, canoodling Cadbury, all after midnight.

My niece Elizabeth's baby Indi May was due yesterday, but is still keeping us all guessing. Oh, and speaking of babies, Reeve and Chocci Chocson became 6 times grandparents two weeks ago with the arrival of Brontë, and 7 times grandparents yesterday with the arrival of Ryder.

+paytontedwithlove+