No more grumpy old . . .

I never need much of an excuse to read or listen to journalist and broadcaster, Katherine Whitehorn, most recently on BBC R4's Reasons to be Cheerful series. Ms Whitehorn was castigating grumpiness (in programmes such as Grumpy Old Men and Grumpy Old Women, although, confusingly, both tended to feature not Grumpy Old but Grumpy Middle-aged Men and Women). There is, she argued, much more to be cheerful about than there is to set us moaning and she outlined some of the many changes in the modern world that have made our lives easier. At least, the lives of those of us in the developed nations.

The older I get, the more I agree with her. Yes, the world can be a harsh and frightening place but (and I'm now being UK-specific), the majority of us are not losing loved ones in the heat and dust of Helmand Province; we are not watching everything we have ever worked for being destroyed and carried away in the worst floods for almost a century. And even though we are promised public spending death by a thousand cuts, we have clothes on our backs, food on our tables . . . 

I may now be (officially but not in my head) a pensioner and my pension may be rubbish but I have turned things that I love doing into ways of generating the income I need to stay in the home that I love (the bottom having fallen out of the market for the sort of freelance work I was doing pre-retirement. And, besides, it was probably time to make space for younger writers and editors).

It's not that I don't have my moments of irritation or exasperation but I can't imagine that anyone would want to read about them. And, besides, any number of things have made me happy in recent weeks, apart from my travels with the Edinburgh Boy. For example . . . Divisadero by Michael Ondaatje, a subtle, thought-provoking and finely wrought novel by one of my favourite writers; Sophia Coppola's Marie Antoinette, a brilliant, ravishing film, with a surprising but highly effective soundtrack; various gorgeous and bargain items bought in Gudrun Sjödén's summer sale, (Gudrun Sjödén's clothes are described by one Mumsnet member as 'Boden on acid' and therefore guaranteed to bring out my old inner hippie); the kindness of my daughter and her husband in giving me a shiny, almost-new, flat-screen television when my older TV died a slow and painful death; finding an excellent local homeopath, whose skills and wisdom have got me back on the road to good health; and these characters, whose week-long stay almost converted me into a terrier fan.

 

And there was this, a song remembered from Family Favourites and my radio-fixated childhood, which featured on the soundtrack of a DVD I watched on my laptop on an overnight stop en route to Scotland. Seventy years ago it became - and remains to this day - the only Chinese popular song to become a hit in the West. There have been subsequent English language versions by Frankie Laine, Petula Clark and Aneka (of Japanese Boy fame) but none, I think, have anything like the impact of this, the original Méi gui méi gui zuì jiao mei by Miss Yao Lee. Evocative of another time, another place and quite wonderful.

Comments

[Dancing Beastie]

I LOVE the description of Gudrun's clothes as 'Boden on acid'. It made me laugh out loud, so has proved to be another reason to be cheerful! Perhaps the tendency to moan is an indulgence of the generally well off. When things get really tough, after all, one has to put one's head down and get on with it. I confess to finding the Grumpy Old.. series enjoyably cathartic, but I do agree that it is vital to find pleasure in the little things. Recognising when one is happy is probably the secret of contentment.

[Shelley]

I think once we get spoiled to having things it is scary to be threatened with their loss. That said, listening to people complain about the way things are is quite grating, I find. I try to be around people who are able to look on the positive side of things. Boden on Acid is a perfect description for those clothes. I'm afraid being petite I'd be swamped in them, but I'm bookmarking the site all the same!

[60 Going On 16]

Oh good, Dancing Beastie and Shelley - that Boden on acid remark made me laugh too.

Shelley - why not order the catalogue? it's free and much easier to browse than the website, which is not the most straightforward in the world. I wondered if I was too old to wear her clothes but have now worn a couple of the items that I bought recently and actually received some compliments - and that doesn't happen too often when one is pushing 63! (Dancing Beastie - that's another addition to the reasons to be cheerful.)

[Jay]

I've never heard that song, but it's rather charming, isn't it?

Love all your reasons to be cheerful - those terriers do look almost enough to convert one! - and I'm now off to look for Boden on Acid. Sounds good to me! Now, if they only do stuff in my size ....

[Dancing Beastie]

How funny - I sometimes wonder if I'm too young to wear Gudrun clothes! (Flattering myself I fear.) Actually I think they look fab on everyone, and I'm sure your compliments were well-deserved. There's definitely a bit of a Gudrun cult in this part of the world: not many of us, but we can each recognise someone in the cult at a hundred paces. Her clothes are the most sunny and cheerful (and yes, a bit mad) that you could hope to find. Very un-British, which is why we need them!

[60 Going On 16]

Jay - Gudrun's clothes come in all sizes and you can mix up the styles, layer them etc. There's bound to be something that will be right for you! (Terriers gorgeous by the way but I doubt that they could convert you from your beloved rescue greyhounds. I'm still in the rescue Labrador camp but it was touch and go for a while.)

Cult is right, Dancing Beastie; found myself sitting opposite someone at a party a month ago, who was wearing the two-layered Gudrun frock I was planning to buy. Instant bonding! I'm with Robert Herrick when it comes to clothes - just love a touch of 'sweet disorder in the dress'.