Itty bitty stuff..

1. Radio 3 is devoting itself to Beethoven for AN ENTIRE WEEK. Could be good, could be tiresome. Right now good enough - his variations on God Save the Queen. Does it leave Granny feeling patriotic? No. Added to which:

2. The sun is out again at last! - after over a week. So patriotic or not, nice or not, Granny is about to abandon Mr B for the garden, and her precious copy of Giardian Review of Books, picked up this morning; though not without a brief reflection on:

3.This curiousity. Her new system incorporates Microsoft's so-called upgrade of Outlook Express called 'Entourage.' It's fine, though she can't see why it should be considered any improvement. Also why, rather than saying 'no new messages' it pronounces, grandly, 'no pending schedules? Is the word 'message' too domestic for business men - meaning could be note to plumber, instruction to or from wife, amorous/lewd note to/from lover/mistress? Whereas pending schedule sounds important enough to make them feel better or at least more resigned to having to spend all the lives at desk/in meetings instead of on wife, children, mistress, garden, DIY - or the Guardian Review of Books? Or is just that Microsoft enjoys being POMPOUS?

These businessmen. They outlaw words like passenger, user, etc etc for 'customer.' (Read consumer.) Now this. Why can't they leave the English language alone. Teenage argot is expressive at least. Granny likes that often enough - was there ever a more evocative instruction than 'get sorted.' But this...