Saturday 19 August 2006

More earwigging

Well, I've charged the camera and updated the iPod. I've chosen the books and washed the car. The Sage has checked the oil, water and tyres and filled the car with petrol (yes he is sweet. What do you mean, I don't deserve him? Am I not sweet?). All I have to do is pack, and I always do that at the last moment.

Another excellent concert tonight and another delightful next-door neighbour. I simply said hello and, seeing he didn't have a programme, offered him mine to read. It turned out that his granddaughter was playing in the orchestra. She is still at music college, but the Britten-Pears Orchestra offers opportunities for promising students to play. There were 600 auditioning for 6 places and she was offered one, and for 3 concerts too, which the others weren't, so it was a great compliment to her ability. I was so glad I'd spoken to him and given him the opportunity to tell me about her. A nice signet ring on the little finger of his left hand - I tried, discreetly, to eye the crest but couldn't see it.

Ro came with me tonight, so we had supper before the performance and enjoyed listening to our neighbours. First there were two men, talking mostly about zoos, but I never did know why. There was a couple on our other side, he with a broken arm, who nevertheless courteously offered to go and fetch the chocolate cake. She cheerfully pointed out that he'd have to wave for her to go and carry the tray, so she'd go - would he like some more wine? They beamed happily at each other. The later neighbours on the other side were slightly odd. In their 80s I should think, he with a very pale head as if he always wears a hat. She suddenly noticed she had three, not two tickets and remembered she had got the other in case 'Alison' wanted to come, but had then omitted to ask her. Maybe they would take it back at the box office? "A bit late, it's after 7" I muttered. "Just imagining the ticket touts outside the door" returned Ro.

In the interval, I heard a woman say to her husband "Imagine you forgetting to turn off your phone." "Hmm" he agreed. "You should have been more careful. Just think, how awful it would have been if it had rung." "Quite amusing though, I should think" he replied, refusing to be drawn. "I should have died of, of shame and embarrassment," she declared. "What, again?" he replied gently.

After the interval, I looked for them - I'd seen him but not her. He looked good-natured, she, although attractive and well dressed, less so. He clutched his jacket. She reached for it. He, for an instant, resisted, then relaxed and let her take it. She pointedly smoothed it out, refolded it so that it would not crease, then returned it to him.

Honestly, it was all a lesson in how not to be happily married. From both of them.

3 comments:

y.Wendy.y said...

I know it's supposed to be terrible to eavsedrop - but what fun there is to be had in culling snippets of other people's lives. And that poor man - sentenced to alife of hen-pecking and submissiveness. But then - he could do something about it - so does that make him meek and mild or weak?

How do we know said...

i like the wisdom u put in that.. how not to be happily married.. such a small thing, and you draw so much from it.. one more time, as far as I am concerned.. u are the sage! :-)

Z said...

Geena, it seemed to me that he had decided to be passive and that was his form of dismissing her - I may be reading far too much into it of course, but it appeared almost insultingly non-reactive.
how do we know - aw, you are a honey, thanks!