A Murky Past

I have always had a perfectly normal relationship with my office phone. I polish him once a week and, in return, he chirps merrily whenever someone rings.  But, as of this morning, our relationship lies in tatters as it has come to light that one of us has a dark and murky past.

Today I received a letter from a police force in another part of the country saying that my phone (bought from Ebay) was stolen property. It could have been written with slightly more tact, as it was only in the fourth paragraph that it stated the letter was for information only and that I was not criminally liable and could keep the phone. By the time I got to that part, I had already half-planned my escape to Brazil and mentally buried the incriminating evidence in my neighbour’s garden.

Although it is heartening to know that the police do take action on these things (apparently, the seller has admitted all and is being prosecuted shortly), with all the talk of the amount of paperwork the police have to contend with, was it really necessary to write to all the unwitting buyers like me and inform them of their new “victim of crime” status?

The benefit to me of knowing this, when no action is needed on my part, is pretty much nil. In fact, I would rather not know, as now I find myself looking at my poor little phone in a new light, wondering if we will ever rebuild that vital circle of trust necessary for human-phone interaction. I think I will start today by giving him an extra polish and adding a few numbers to his memory. After all, he is the real victim in all this and who knows what trauma he went through on the night he was snatched?

News from the Workhouse

Still here… still alive … still typing my little fingers to the bone.  In the past few weeks I have been working on so many topics, from man traps to Victorian replicas of archaeological finds to the history of postcards that my brain is now officially in a complete state of befuddlement. I even got my centuries mixed up while on the phone to a client this afternoon, which is not a good thing for a jobbing historian to do.

On the house front, I am making some headway with developing new habits, like picking up after myself and washing up before bed. I’ve also done well on the creating new outfits and will try and post pics of January’s outfit soon. This weekend, we’re off to visit some friends in Wales, which will be a truly welcome break.

Anyway, I don’t think the work is going to let up until the end of March, so I shall probably continue to be quiet on the blog front for a while. I am reading everyone else’s blogs - I’ll try and be a bit better on commenting!