We had a committee meeting of the Numismatic Society last night. It was difficult to tell it apart from a group of elderly men having a meal. The average age must have been 65, the average hair was white and the eldest member joined the society before the rest of us were born.
It is the 75th Anniversary of the society this year and the conversation was mainly about ex-members, including a fair number who have stopped collecting and joined the choir invisible. Against that background, one of the younger members tried to start a conversation about recruitment of younger people and the future of the society. Most of the members were too deaf to hear him so a potential moment of tactlessness soon passed.
And that is about all that happened at the meeting. It only meets once a year and is not the most active committee I have ever been on, I must admit. At one time I would have had a go at livening things up but I can’t really be bothered.
I did, however, have a very nice Steak and Ruddles Pie with gravy, a small portion of chips and a tiny blob of mushy peas. It was an adequate portion, but, as you may detect, one that fell slightly short. The pie was excellent, and large, so I wonder why they feel the need to make themselves look mean by skimping on the cheap bits.
Ruddles, for those of you who don’t know, was once a great British beer formerly brewed in the county of Rutland. It’s a bit annoying that the Greene King pub chain has taken Ruddles over, plundered and pilfered its good name, altered the recipe and is now using it to add luster to its steak pie.
They call it marketing, I call it another reason I hate the 21st Century.
British West Africa 1/10th of a Penny
Yes, I agree with Tootlepedal, what happened to Ruddles is the way of the modern world.
I hope you are able to get some younger people interested in the Numismatic Society. Fresh blood is essential to survival of any group.
Like all these things, as long as we work at it, we will manage. Like all committees, some people resist change and do nothing.
I am sorry about the Ruddles but it is the way of the world. I like your description of the evening. It sounds like peace personified.
As the secretary p[pointed out there was a conversation about Tolstoy on one side of him about Tolstoy and one on the other side about Su Pollard (she’s from Nottingham). I was in the Tolstoy group but wishing I was at the other end of the table. 🙂
A long term friend of mine had the nickname Ruddles in our sports clubs – for obvious reasons
🙂 All sports clubs need a Ruddles!
Well, overall not a bad night. Thanks for explaining about Ruddles. I had never heard of it.
I am like a beacon, shining my light in all sorts of corners you never knew existed. 🙂
This may or may not be a good thing.
You bet! I have learned many things reading your blog, including mushy peas. We don’t have them here. 😉
We had a discussion of mushy pes on Monday night- one of our group is of Southern upbringing and he just can’t understand the concept., particularly when eaten in traditional Nottingham style with mint sauce. 🙂
I must admit I had a hard time with the concept, too. 😉
Imagine a thick pea soup with added deliciousness. 🙂
You can get them at Murphy’s Irish Pub in Sonoma, California. 🙂
I can get them at Captain Cod. It’s 200 yards away. 🙂
On the downside, we don’t have sunshine or film stars . . .
Murphy’s is 10 hrs from here.
That’s virtually next door in American terms isn’t it?
One hard day’s drive from here, but many pats of it are beautiful.
Yes, lots of scenery. 🙂
If ever I am in Sonoma, I will keep that in mind. 😉
I am the same as Laurie regarding mushy peas. Your pea soup explanation helped quite a bit. I LOVE pea soup. But I might hate it if it was called mushy peas.
It’s accurate as a description, though it may not be great from marketing point of view. However, let’s just think about biscuits and gravy, which seems to feature neither biscuits nor gravy . . .
🙂