Cutting Remarks

Here's Rosie, carefully trimming the stamps from my Christmas Card envelopes.  I should have mentioned this earlier in the season. Sorry! 

There are loads of charities which will take these, and use them to fund their activities. I always send mine to Baptist World Missions [as did my mother and grandmother before me] 

There is a collection point at our chapel- which is operates all year. You can find a list of other charities here

The charities sell them [usually by weight] on to dealers- who pick out valuable ones for collectors, and the rest are sold for crafting, or recycling. Charities can raise thousands of pounds like this.

I get fewer and fewer letters with 'real' stamps these days, but always more at Christmastime. It only takes a minute to trim an envelope before it goes into the recycling. And having a willing young helper like Rosie makes the job even easier! She knows this activity will help to provide schools for little girls in Africa, and she is all in favour of that!

Please Mr Postman!

Jolly Postman is on his way to Scotland! Having had dates with three lovely ladies [and plenty of fun with Rosie] he is off to stay with Anne. I have followed carefully all the instructions...

I included three pictures of 'the girls' each with a brief biography on the back. 

I put the story of his visit to Cornerstones in the envelope [which is basically the various blogposts you have read here] and I stamped his passport 

And on the two blank journal pages allotted to me I put some pictures of Norfolk plus a map.  I cheated a bit - previous hostesses have done fabulous works of art - drawings, doodles, calligraphy... I am afraid I just cut some pictures out of some free Norfolk Tourism leaflets. 

Oh, and I included a small gift for the next hostess [Anne] as suggested by PomPom 

It has been fun being part of this Blog-Tour, especially this time round, with a small child assisting me. But unlike PomPom's earlier "World Tours", this one does have a specific purpose. I am concerned that after meeting a score of eligible women, Jolly will be overwhelmed with choice, and feel unable to commit to any of them for fear of disappointing the rest. I hope one of these many females will please Mr Postman.

Will we get to vote on our favourite to be his bride, or will PomPom make the decision - or worst option, will the name come out of an envelope? Rosie liked all three of his Norfolk dates!

I'm not really convinced by this speed-dating lark. On the other hand, getting a piece of real mail - not an electronic message of some sort - is rather special.

And encouraging the younger generation to put pen to paper is always good too. Thanks PomPom for setting up this crazy caper!

[I do love the music of The Carpenters!]

And Lastly, Lilibet

Jolly has had a great time visiting East Anglia. His two dates with Jill and Maggie were quite relaxed. He was a little anxious about the third lady he was due  to meet. Elizabeth 57 [Lilibet to her closest friends] is a retired headteacher. 

Lilibet dresses very smartly, and has a neat haircut, and smart spectacles. She has a trim figure and looks good in heels. She was head of a prestigious girls’ school in Kent for 15 years. Her favourite subject is history, which she studied at Oxford – all her pupils loved her lessons, because they were really interesting.  

Lilibet is Churchwarden at the ancient village church. It was built in the 11th C and even in August, Jolly thought it felt cold inside. She explained about the round Saxon tower, and the medieval graffiti. 

 

Lilibet took Jolly to a very posh Belgian restaurant in town where they ate mussels – he was pleasantly surprised by how good these tasted. Other guests turned to look at his attractive dining companion – but Jolly felt a little underdressed. 

Lilibet’s home – a smart Georgian house on the edge of her village – over 200 years old – was furnished beautifully, and extremely tidy. She was a truly gracious lady – but Jolly felt a bit inadequate because she was so clever [although not at all patronising towards him]. 

Lilibet did have a wicked sense of humour, and they laughed a lot together. They shared a mutual fondness for BBC Radio 4, especially the quiz and comedy programmes. Jolly sensed she was perhaps a little lonely, and maybe she too was looking for quiet companionship as he was. He felt she might become a true, loyal and lasting friend, even if their relationship did not proceed beyond a romantic level.

Jolly Meets Jill

Jolly The Postman, having recently retired, feels he is at last in a position to settle down and find a wife. His long and busy career with Royal Mail has meant long, unsociable hours, especially around Christmas-time. In the last few years, age has crept up on him, and when he gets home at the end of the day he is often exhausted and a teeny bit grumpy. He has been going to bed without having a proper meal, or with indigestion from rapidly eaten take-away food. A settled, balanced diet would be a good idea.

But now his time is his own, and he can enjoy the freedom of planning his days [and meals]  better. He wants find a companion to share his life - so PomPom has arranged for him to travel the globe in search of Mrs Write [excuse the pun, but he has spent his life surrounded by written communications] I found three women here who were interested in meeting him. The first is Jill...

Jill 58, is a cheerful widow, and extremely thrifty. “Make do and Mend” is her motto. She did an expert repair when Jolly’s suitcase split. She drives a little Toyota – but usually goes places on her bike. Her favourite clothes are jeans and slogan teeshirts during the week, and pretty dresses on Sunday [she teaches Sunday school] Her hair is blonde. Jill is a keen environmentalist and recycles and reuses everything she can. 

In "Normal Times" Jill is on the rota for the Lunch Club Cooking at her chapel - but that is currently closed for the pandemic. 

A wedding tea was happening on the day they met up, so she showed Jolly the church kitchen, and the tables set out for tea. Jolly had never seen so many fancy teapots! Jolly liked her Jill's caring nature, and her generous spirit. She seemed a very hard-worker.

Jill invited Jolly to share a home-cooked lunch in her little cottage. She showed him her little garden, where she grows lots of produce as well as colourful flowers. They had fresh bread, vegetable soup, and blackberry crumble [made with foraged blackberries] 

Jill is short, round and cuddly, and very loving. She made Jolly feel warm and happy inside. They enjoyed talking about their favourite books and programmes [they both like detective stories – and TV crime series set in Scandinavia] Jill also talked about her grandchildren- Jolly liked the idea of belonging to a bigger family, and having everyone over for tea - especially if Jill made Victoria Sponge cakes 

This was Jolly's first date. A special thank you to Steph, who has painted the women's portraits for me.

Just Good Friends

Jolly, The Postman, has certainly been getting out and about. Rosie has really taken to him, and asked that he accompany us on our days out. I would like to stress at this point, she is not one of his 'dates' They are just good friends. Apart from the obvious age discrepancy, she wears him out. She has held him in her hand as we travel in the car, and told him all sorts of facts about cheetahs, and when we went to meet up with her great-aunt at the Garden Centre, Jolly was invited too.

Mum and Marion and sleeping Jess were in the outdoor eating area - whilst Rosie and I explored the adventure playground. I think Jolly found Ro's enthusiasm for the slides, the rope walkways and the climbing equipment all a little bit much. But they remain good friends...