Kirkwood Drive

Here's a interesting corner of the Kirkwood kingdom: Kirkwood Drive in Sydney. It's named after William Love Kirkwood, brother of our grandfather and sister of Aunt Peggy. He was a decorated military doctor who treated casualties from Gallipoli in the First World War. He emigrated from Ayrshire to Australia in 1906 to practice with his maternal uncles (both Kerrs). His grandson has just sent me William's biography.

Eager to be examined

Bertie comes home from school and recounts (very briefly) the day's pre-GCSE exams. "Try me on a question!", I implore, knowing full well that I'm unlikely to know the answer especially if the subject is science. Dad used to do that.

Pic of the day: A tantalisingly grainy scene from Pembrokeshire in 1975. I think we can all safely say that the actual colour of Mum's bikini, the windbreak and surfboard [great flash!] match. I think Dad's jumper was red too.

Clapping at the end of TV programmes

Dad would often do this as I'm reminded every time that Bertie and I now applaud (loudly, of course) when the credits roll. Odd buggers, all of us.

Picture of the day: The happy twins at a family reunion in the early 1990s, I think:

After a busy day ...

Dad would say he'd had a “hell of a day”and then recount that all he’d eaten was a single sandwich or something just as paltry.

Pic of the day: Here's a rarity: three generations (well, almost) of matriarchs.

Fighting talk and Gold Top

If you offered to take on Dad at a sport (eg tennis) he would often reply "That's fighting talk, that is!" much as I did when Beck challenged me to a game of pickleball on Thursday. Not a specific Dadism, I appreciate, but a phrase he favoured.

Gold Top was, of course, Jersey milk. Dad would often check if the milk was Gold Top especially if Mum served it with a dessert when cream had run out.

Pic of the day: This one's in honour of the recent Issitt Disney wedding. Which niece was the bride, Beck?

Improve your mind

An expression used by Dad to urge offspring to do something educational rather than trivial, eg read a book. (I found myself saying it when spotting Bertie on his new smartphone.)

Pic of the day: Who can name the venue of this family meal? In the first pic Beck and Martin look enthralled by the occasion ...

Coughing

I found myself doing a Dad cough this evening: Starting off almost as a low growl before gradually being promoted to a full on bark, often multiple times. Note that Paul has already claimed the admonishment to ones self, to "shut up" after such a cough.  On a related note, also found myself stating how I'd like to "give the chef a wee peck" last night, but predictably this was one of the low hanging fruit that went in the early days, but worth revisiting.