This World, This Life

  Farewell, Diego Diego Armando Maradona was not only a footballer, he was a genius.  A midget.  Latterly, a junkie.  A national hero.  Front page news as well as back page.  Loved and despised - but loved more than despised (at least outside of England).  As unpredictable off the pitch as on it. The only other footballer I've seen with his level of ball control and sheer on-pitch genius was George Best - and the two were strikingly similar in the way they played their football and lived their lives.  Both had problems adjusting to normality once their playing days were over, and both went to an early grave (Best at 59, and now Diego at 60).  Both played in an era where most defenders could be brutal in their treatment of gifted attackers like them, and could not rely on protection from match officials.  Injuries, serious ones, were not uncommon and both suffered their share.  Pitches were often poor, mudheaps in winter and bumpy an...

  Or, at least, I'm increasingly sure I did.  Or have it..... It's not a 100% certainty because I haven't been tested.  This is because Poland is not big on testing, and is charging quite a chunk of money for it - no free tests here! - and also because in a health system that is creakier than the NHS, there are people who need it far more than I do.  I can get by, thank God. But since probably the end of March things have not been right. ------------------------------------------------------- I've not had all the symptoms, and those that I have had could easily be confused for those of a bad cold or flu.  Stuffy nose, sneezing - check.  Sore throat and a dry cough - check.  High temperature and fever - check.  Flu, cold, COVID - who knows! Then there are the other symptoms.  Bodily aches and pains?  Yep, very much so, but nothing new - I've had joint pains for years in both hips and both knees, and have been medicating for a good 10 year...

So here is a disclaimer: as an Englishman living in Poland I don't really care whether the President of the United States of America is a Democrat or a Republican.  Doesn't stop me from having and voicing an opinion on the incumbent, however, no matter which side of the aisle he represents.  All I care about is how his policies affect the direction of travel of the States, and how that might affect my life.  So with that in mind, I cannot wait for President Donald Trump to vacate his job and the White House in 60-odd days time. ------------------------------------------------------------- I've held off from writing this in the hope that in view of the Election result, he would do the first Presidential thing since his own elevation four years ago - namely, accept the result, concede defeat and offer his Administration's support to guarantee the peaceful transfer of power that is, according to most Americans of either stripe, his sacred duty. It is after all what was ...

This a re-post from last year.  The sentiments are unchanged and always will be, but I've updated it to take account of the passage of time and the Pandemic. Forget Hallowe'en.   Despite all the trick or treating, crazy costumes and horror movies on the telly, here in Poland it's no more than a sideshow.  Thankfully the American obsession with it hasn't reached us, at least not to the same extent.  Indeed, the Catholic Church here, whose priests and nuns provide religious instruction in schools, in a country where First Communion and Confirmation are taken much more seriously than in many places (certainly than back home in Britain) openly and happily denounce Hallowe'en as being Evil, and encourage parents to ignore it and punish kids who join in the fun.  Mind you, they say likewise about the Easter Bunny and Father Christmas.  Which says a lot about the the shape of things here right now..... No, the big day here is the next day, November 1st. ...