Common People

As the great and the good once again descend on Davos, a small town in Switzerland about the size of Bridport, intending to iron out the world’s problems and enjoy some old-fashioned networking while they’re at it, here at Pilsdon our affairs have been rather more humble in nature.

For instance this week ushered in the annual Pilsdon Snooker and Pool championships. Played over a weekend, the matches are conducted in the august surroundings of the Pilsdon sports hall, which can comfortably accommodate an audience of ten at any one time. Operating a simple knock-out structure and with just one frame played to decide who goes through, the tournament allows for no off-days - participants are required to be at the peak of their game right from the offset.

A chunk of tasty brawn (made from pigs heads)

I entered the Snooker tournament. Some of you may remember that two years ago I somehow won the Pilsdon Snooker cup but knowing that that was some kind of bizarre fluke, I wasn’t overly confident of winning this one. I found myself drawn against Tom* for my first match who claimed to have spent large chunks of his youth in the snooker hall pulling all-nighters on amphetamines, and it showed. I managed to get quite a few balls into the pockets to my credit but his cueing was accurate and the scoreline decisive. Tom went on to win the championship and will be receiving his prize at the presentation ceremony tonight.

It is also the time of year to wander past the kitchen only to be drawn in by the wafting fragrance of oranges boiling on the stove. Yes, marmalade may be going out of fashion in the wider world (although the new Paddington film may give it a boost) but it has never lost its allure here at Pilsdon. Half a crate (5kg-worth) of Seville oranges appeared last week which were quickly sliced and boiled up with a tonne of sugar and a bit of lemon juice and pectin to make 30 jars of delicious and tangy breakfast spread.  As this is unlikely to last us long we will be buying another 10kg of oranges today but will have to wait until more sugar arrives next Tuesday with our fortnightly food delivery from Booker Wholesale before marmalading can recommence.

The 1958 advert for Pilsdon Manor which is when Percy Smith bought it (but not with the 803 acres!)
 and began Pilsdon Community

Out in the garden the last of the main beds have been dug over and only needs some muck spreading now, apart from an area with a few giant parsnips still lurking in the soil - we’re a bit scared of pulling them up. Two new strawberry beds are being dug out of the turf and will need timber edging fitted. The countless soft fruit bushes (gooseberries and blackberries) are slowly being weeded and pruned, the raspberry canes have been ruthlessly chopped down, and the polytunnels and glasshouse are getting a bit of TLC, which is only fair as they are currently bursting with vegetable life - we are harvesting broccoli, pak choi, kale and salad leaves, and there are cauliflowers, cabbages, broad beans and peas coming along, to be munched in the next few months.

Life at Pilsdon is the ‘common life’ - common in that we eat and share things in common, but also common in the ordinary sense. We carry on with the tasks necessary to feed ourselves and keep ourselves warm and clean in a way which we hope doesn’t damage our environment. People the world over need a few basic conditions to do the same, such as peace, health, liberty and enough money for their needs; in so many countries one or more of these essentials are lacking. It’s the type of people who go to Davos who have the influence and money to make real change for the better - let’s hope that it’s more than a chinwag this year. Perhaps we ought to host them at Pilsdon next time which should be grounding for them all, especially if they have to milk the cows (though they might miss the alcohol I suppose).

The completed jigsaw in all its glory - minus 7 missing pieces :-(
The next jigsaw, of London Looking North, is well on its way already

*Name changed as usual.