February Editorial

Our editor has a flight of fancy after having his photograph taken in Norwich!

Hello again,

Last week Maureen and I visited the wonderful city of Norwich. Needless to say, we chose the day which followed the tremendous gale force winds, heavy rain and warnings from Radio Norfolk not to travel unless the journey was really necessary. Those of you who are married or in a serious relationship will know that the female partner's need to go shopping is number one on the list of priorities. So we went!

There was the remnants of a road accident just outside Barton Bendish but, thereafter, our journey in to the city was probably the easiest we have ever made. Possibly because other, more sensible people, heeded the warning not to travel unless essential. To be honest, the worst experience of the day was the sudden tropical style downpour that forced people off the road, traffic to frantically reduce speed and the sudden transformation of the side roads off St Stephen's Street into raging rivers.

But I am getting ahead of myself. Before the rain arrived, we made our regular pilgrimages to Lakeland and Marks & Spencer and then headed towards the Norwich market. After what seemed an eternity, I elected to take a seat on one of the many wooden seats

just up from the market while Maureen made a concerted effort to spend what was left of her pension. Because of the weather, there was only three of us on two seats rather than the normal 20 or so. After about 10 minutes, I was approached by a very attractive young lady who said "I know this is an odd question, but I am with the local Art school and am doing a project. Would you mind of I took your photograph?"

Obviously, I agreed and have since spent almost every waking minute wondering just what this project was. Was she just seeking elegant senior citizens relaxing in a commercial environment? Did she need a character study of a lantern jawed ex-military man to bolster a sagging story on the plight of Britain's Armed Forces? Or was she the antithesis of a paedophile who simply collected pictures of old people to fan her unusual sexual fantasies?

Of course, all this idle contemplation was given short shrift when I recounted my experience to Graham Forster. With a completely straight face he said "Where did she put her white stick while she took your photograph?" Ah well! So much for an old man's dreams....

I hope you survive the winds and have a truly romantic St Valentine's Day.

Ray Thompson