Anything for the weekend sir?

13th July 2013

Another restful day. So again a series of random thoughts on impressions that have been made on me.

Barbershop.

This morning I went to a local barber shop for a haircut. Even there the North Carolina welcome was to the fore. Unlike in the UK where the person having their hair cut is turned to face the big mirrors on the wall, at this shop I faced out in to the room. Consequently the conversation with the barber (so like those in the UK - weather, holidays, politics) soon involved waiting customers. So that was different. And then something that made me smile. At the end of the cut instead of the brush down with a clothes brush, the barber used a mini air hose to blow the hairs away. This was similar to the kind of devices at some golf courses that are used to clean golf shoes (though less powerful I hasten to add.)

Thankfully (or sadly depending on your point of view) no barbershop quartet appeared. Instead ABC’s Good Morning America was playing on TV. And it appeared that ABC was holding auditions for village idiot judging by the presenters and the “news” items they covered. I would have liked some real news rather than features such as “Wienermobile Competition Celebrates National Hot Dog Month.” Or an obsession with the impending birth of the Royal baby. In the space of the 45 minutes or so I was in the shop, either waiting or in the chair, they went over to their London special correspondent Bianna Golodryga for progress on the Royal birth or “Contraction Watch” as she called it.

(The lady clearly is not an idiot. Her Wiki entry shows that she is fluent in Russian and a graduate in Russian/East European & Eurasian studies. So why does she have to appear to be such an airhead?)

The report suggested that Britain has come to a standstill while everyone waits for the birth. Honestly American friends reading this, Britain has not come to a standstill. There will be some interest among some certainly but not obsessively.

Apologies to American friends who may be fans of GMA but it’s not for me.

Water bottles

I’ve been struck by the amount of bottled water drunk here. It’s hot certainly and people (understandably) keep water in the fridge and drink water frequently. But why not use tap water and put it into reusable containers? Why buy bottled tap water in the supermarket?

Now I’m as bad. I sometimes buy a bottle of water at home and we have bought a big pack of water here. But when I stop and think about it this is crazy. The water here is perfectly drinkable and readily available (given the rain too readily available some would argue.) So there is no need to buy bottled water.

By coincidence a friend here in Mooresville posted this picture today.

And the same is true in the UK as this article shows. (Written coincidentally by David Gray but not me!) http://www.theecologist.org/News/news_analysis/1883516/britains_love_affair_with_bottled_water_a_national_scandal.html

I’m sorry to get preachy especially as a hypocrite. But it is a daft situation.

I believe that we are God’s stewards of this planet. And as God’s servants we should be showing and demonstrating a different lifestyle. And caring more about water and waste is something we can easily do and should do. I’m not saying that we should be going round in hair shirts. But there are changes we can all make that can send out a message.


Choir social evening

The day ended with the church choir social evening. A lovely time and some interesting conversations.

I was very interested to find out that the church’s musical director has taken part in improvisation comedy for a few years and has from time to time performed stand up. That’s impressive. (And to show she has got a sense of humour she seems to have forgiven me about the organist and terrorist joke. Who knows, maybe she’ll use it?) And we had a good conversation about films. Especially the new Star Trek films.

Apparently last year William Shatner was doing a one man show and came to Charlotte. My friend went to see it and he was very funny. I told her about his appearances on BBC’s “Have I got news for you” last year.