Breakfast At Tiffany’s

Barclays Bank Pensioners Club Christmas lunch at Barton Manor, if I’m being strictly accurate, but the picture I took of the room was identical to the one I took this time last year, so I thought this snap of me with Audrey and Leonardo would reflect what a glitzy occasion it was. Or how many cardboard cut outs of Hollywood stars the hotel had in reception. One of the two.
Last year we dined under the threat of Omicron and a threatened lockdown, which rather cast a pall over the occasion. Much more like normal this year and there seemed to be more staff around as well so we got served a lot quicker. The meal itself was very good and - thanks to a generous subsidy from the club - extremely good value!
But it’s a long time since I’ve eaten that much in one go so I fell asleep as soon as we got home and didn’t wake up for a couple of hours! A bowl of soup and a roll will be all I’ll need for tea.
We were all asked beforehand what we thought about not having crackers - save on paper, single use plastics, etc. Universal agreement to this policy. We had the option of bringing our own hats if we wanted to, but I’m glad to say no one did.
Looking around the room, and listening to various conversations, I realise that my life in retirement is not the same as most of my contemporaries. I worry about nailing the bass riff in “All Right Now”. They worry about picking grandchildren up from school on time. We live very different lives…