It’s St Swithin’s Day today. Just thought I’d mention it . . .
It was still sub-tropical as opposed to sub-arctic in the Isle of Man when I sat down to write this and even in the middle of last week people were looking doleful and telling each other that this was our summer for this year. But we made the most of it.
For instance, legs were on generous display.
No, I’m not talking about girls’ legs. You can see them in full any time these days. It’s the men’s legs which I wish to draw attention to.
Well, no, let me withdraw that remark. The display of men’s legs was shameless and did none of us any favours. You had to avert the eyes.
Men’s legs were all over the place in more ways than one. No wonder our mothers put us into long trousers before we were out of boyhood. They knew what dreadful things were going to happen under there with the passing of the years.
In fact I am sure that last week the ladies of the Isle of Man were rolling their eyes in despair and muttering to each other: ‘I wish the old fools would keep their trousers on.’
(What? Yes I know. This is not always the case. Let’s leave it at that.)
My legs have also been visible and I have no hesitation in saying that they have seen better days, like the rest of me. But they do have an honourable track record. When I was competing in the Isle of Man open squash rackets championship in, I think, 1968, I didn’t win anything but the ladies committee decided to give me a trophy for best men’s legs in show.
It was a proud moment even when one of the ladies told me later that while the legs were fine the rest wasn’t up to much.
The other feature of last week’s fine weather, in the most striking way, was Kirstie. She was often on Manx Radio giving us good news, the station’s very first female weather forecaster; weatherwoman I suppose,
She must be the first girl to break into the sternly male enclave that has been the order of the day in the Met Office at Ronaldsway, There was no official announcement in advance of her coming – and let me say as urgently and ingratiatingly as I can that there was reason why this should not be so.
She just turned up at the end of the line one morning and what a stir there was among some of the station’s male programme presenters. The arch avuncularity was tangible.
Fortunately Kirstie kept her head. A lone girl in a workplace full of men needs poise. How does that song go? Ah yes. It’s Raining Men.
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In the Examiner there was a preview of the agenda for last week’s sitting of Tynwald which said there was a question down from ‘the island’s newest MHK, Christ Thomas (Douglas West).’
Well, Tynwald does need all the help it can get.
(I have lost the name of the man who sent this in. Let me know sir and you will get the honourable mention next week).
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Redvers Skillicorn in Bristol sent me the following Manx crossword club from the Western Mail: ____ of Man (4). Yes, an easy one. But it could have been Legs of Man.