One year

We bought our house one year ago. Hard to believe, probably because we didn't move in until March. Today I went down the street to visit a neighbour, a widow who I've chatted to a few times. She told me a few stories about her recent cruise, the theme of which was how affronted she was by the behaviour of other people on the cruise, specifically at her dinner table. In each case, she had said something to the other passengers that I found provocative, so I wasn't at all sympathetic to her point of view (although I nodded politely). Then after choir tonight one of the members told me of his experience leaving a cafe in a huff because the waitress ignored him as he sat and waited to give his dessert order. Service is notoriously bad here--I go and find someone when I'm tired of waiting to give my order or get my bill.

There is a saying here that people will go a mile out of their way to be offended. Today two people told me three stories that confirmed that completely. Not the first time I've heard such stories here. I think it is part of the Ulster Scot personality to take umbrage on the most fabricated of grounds. The McCoys of Hatfield and McCoy fame were Ulster Scots. It's weird because they are also the friendliest, funniest, good craic type of people as well. But you can see Ulster's sectarian past is deeply rooted in a present where people are only too ready to see favouritism or prejudice or slight where there is none. Benefits are being cut elsewhere in the UK but here it is very tough to reduce payments because each side screams that the other is getting more. Sigh.

Here's the view as I walked from the widow's house back to my own, a view I never tire of:

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