Document 884
Correspondence from Canada: Letter 36 - 24.03.82
Author(s): 852
Copyright holder(s): Name withheld
Options:
Highlight word:
Text
The Maggie
24 March '82.
Dear Mum & Dad,
Sorry I haven't written for a while, but I've kind of been snowed under with work etc. And what with cooking for myself and the Stacy Campus Fitness Programme I've hardly had time to think. I'm glad you liked the Easter / Mother's Day card, Mum - it was Carole wrote and told me it was March 21st. Over here it's on the 2nd Sunday in May, so the real cards aren't in yet. I could have sent you a St Patrick's Day card (March 17) - it's really big over here with all the 100th generation Oirish, who use the day as an excuse to wear the ugliest green outfit they have.
The bad news, I guess, is that I don't get a tax rebate after all. (I can't remember if I've already told you this.) The $700 is a tax deduction from the zero I've paid - after working it all out at the Overseas Office it turns out that I owe the govt. $3-60! I won't be going into real estate this summer after all... still, I'm keeping my head happilly above water, economically speaking.
Life has been blistering on apace. The sun is shining still, and (miracle of miracles!) there's HEAT in it these days!! On Sunday I even studied out on the porch for a couple of hours, it was so warm. On Sunday night, however, 2 more inches of snow dropped on us and flurries continued on Monday. Generally, though, the snow is melting fast, and there's a kind of damp slick down the middle of the St John, altho' it will be some time yet before the months-old ice on the river breaks. Did I tell you that during the snowstorms trucks full of snow cleared from the streets drove onto the St. John and dumped their load there? It's another world. (Speaking of other worlds, thanks for the UFO clip you sent).
I've found time to take in a few films in the past couple of weeks - "Rockers", a Jamaican jah-reggae comedy-thriller, and "M", a creaky old German thriller with Peter Lorre as a child-murderer. Both were interesting curiosities.
Oh, of course! - I went to the opening match of the curling. The opening celebrations included a geriatric square dance troupe in funny costumes, provincial premier Richard Hatfield trying and failing to speak Canadian-French, a Canadian military band, and a group of pipers who swept all before them with "Bonnie Dundee". I went with Katie & Kathy from the Maggie, and by chance Kathy had bought tickets for seats just behind about the only Scottish contingent in the Aitken Centre. This was mainly the family of the boy Howie, one of the curlers, which is something to do with timber in Dunlop. The President of the Caledonian Assoc. (or Society?) was sitting with them. So Scotland took on the Canada, and beat them to a raw pulp. It was really good, really tense and exciting - the Canadians were good, especially their captain.
Unfortunately, as you probably know, Canada was too good for Scotland the following Friday in the semi-final, and my host-country went on to lose to Sweden in the finals. Sweden remained unbeaten. I guess "the Boyz" missed my support on the Friday. But you can tell Aunt Anne that they "done weel."
25 March.
Went out with dinner with Ann, Helen, and Mike from the Eng. dept last night, and enjoyed a pleasant repast at the illustrious "Pizza Delight." Julian, an English guy who's now finishing his PhD popped round in the evening and we talked about British politics for a while. He's applying home for various jobs, so far with no luck. He was home at Christmas and wasn't too happy with what he saw. He's very anti-Thatcher, moderate Labour-to-SDP. I see "Our Woy" is trailing in 3rd in the polls at Hillhead. I don't care who gets in really, as long as it isn't the Conservatives. And I got a letter from Dave [CENSORED: surname], saying he's joined the 3 million plus unemployed. There's some hope for the future as far as I can see, but then the future at the moment is so unstable.
I got my tetanus shot last week, by the way, and if I go to Egypt I can get my inoculations at the Student Health Centre. Give my regards to Aunt Mary - I hope the eye tests go well.
So that's Al on holiday, of course. That's funny - 3rd term shoots by so fast, an that will be ¼ of her time at Glasgow by. Does she have a job planned for the summer? I mean, is she going to send me care parcels or vice versa?
Well, I'd better get on up the hill. So far it's a nice day, +2°C and rising, but it's supposed to rain later. That should get rid of some more snow.
Well, take care, stay happy, & give my best to all.
Love,
[CENSORED: forename]
24 March '82.
Dear Mum & Dad,
Sorry I haven't written for a while, but I've kind of been snowed under with work etc. And what with cooking for myself and the Stacy Campus Fitness Programme I've hardly had time to think. I'm glad you liked the Easter / Mother's Day card, Mum - it was Carole wrote and told me it was March 21st. Over here it's on the 2nd Sunday in May, so the real cards aren't in yet. I could have sent you a St Patrick's Day card (March 17) - it's really big over here with all the 100th generation Oirish, who use the day as an excuse to wear the ugliest green outfit they have.
The bad news, I guess, is that I don't get a tax rebate after all. (I can't remember if I've already told you this.) The $700 is a tax deduction from the zero I've paid - after working it all out at the Overseas Office it turns out that I owe the govt. $3-60! I won't be going into real estate this summer after all... still, I'm keeping my head happilly above water, economically speaking.
Life has been blistering on apace. The sun is shining still, and (miracle of miracles!) there's HEAT in it these days!! On Sunday I even studied out on the porch for a couple of hours, it was so warm. On Sunday night, however, 2 more inches of snow dropped on us and flurries continued on Monday. Generally, though, the snow is melting fast, and there's a kind of damp slick down the middle of the St John, altho' it will be some time yet before the months-old ice on the river breaks. Did I tell you that during the snowstorms trucks full of snow cleared from the streets drove onto the St. John and dumped their load there? It's another world. (Speaking of other worlds, thanks for the UFO clip you sent).
I've found time to take in a few films in the past couple of weeks - "Rockers", a Jamaican jah-reggae comedy-thriller, and "M", a creaky old German thriller with Peter Lorre as a child-murderer. Both were interesting curiosities.
Oh, of course! - I went to the opening match of the curling. The opening celebrations included a geriatric square dance troupe in funny costumes, provincial premier Richard Hatfield trying and failing to speak Canadian-French, a Canadian military band, and a group of pipers who swept all before them with "Bonnie Dundee". I went with Katie & Kathy from the Maggie, and by chance Kathy had bought tickets for seats just behind about the only Scottish contingent in the Aitken Centre. This was mainly the family of the boy Howie, one of the curlers, which is something to do with timber in Dunlop. The President of the Caledonian Assoc. (or Society?) was sitting with them. So Scotland took on the Canada, and beat them to a raw pulp. It was really good, really tense and exciting - the Canadians were good, especially their captain.
Unfortunately, as you probably know, Canada was too good for Scotland the following Friday in the semi-final, and my host-country went on to lose to Sweden in the finals. Sweden remained unbeaten. I guess "the Boyz" missed my support on the Friday. But you can tell Aunt Anne that they "done weel."
25 March.
Went out with dinner with Ann, Helen, and Mike from the Eng. dept last night, and enjoyed a pleasant repast at the illustrious "Pizza Delight." Julian, an English guy who's now finishing his PhD popped round in the evening and we talked about British politics for a while. He's applying home for various jobs, so far with no luck. He was home at Christmas and wasn't too happy with what he saw. He's very anti-Thatcher, moderate Labour-to-SDP. I see "Our Woy" is trailing in 3rd in the polls at Hillhead. I don't care who gets in really, as long as it isn't the Conservatives. And I got a letter from Dave [CENSORED: surname], saying he's joined the 3 million plus unemployed. There's some hope for the future as far as I can see, but then the future at the moment is so unstable.
I got my tetanus shot last week, by the way, and if I go to Egypt I can get my inoculations at the Student Health Centre. Give my regards to Aunt Mary - I hope the eye tests go well.
So that's Al on holiday, of course. That's funny - 3rd term shoots by so fast, an that will be ¼ of her time at Glasgow by. Does she have a job planned for the summer? I mean, is she going to send me care parcels or vice versa?
Well, I'd better get on up the hill. So far it's a nice day, +2°C and rising, but it's supposed to rain later. That should get rid of some more snow.
Well, take care, stay happy, & give my best to all.
Love,
[CENSORED: forename]
This work is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
The SCOTS Project and the University of Glasgow do not necessarily endorse, support or recommend the views expressed in this document.
Cite this Document
APA Style:
Correspondence from Canada: Letter 36 - 24.03.82. 2024. In The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=884.
MLA Style:
"Correspondence from Canada: Letter 36 - 24.03.82." The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow, 2024. Web. 21 November 2024. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=884.
Chicago Style
The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech, s.v., "Correspondence from Canada: Letter 36 - 24.03.82," accessed 21 November 2024, http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=884.
If your style guide prefers a single bibliography entry for this resource, we recommend:
The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. 2024. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk.
Information about Document 884
Correspondence from Canada: Letter 36 - 24.03.82
Top
