Fellow Wine\nLovers,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, I\u2019ve been\nbanned, apparently for my own good. Or\nperhaps I could say I\u2019ve given up for Lent and then perhaps it will seem more\nworthy. Whichever way you put it, Wayne\nhas put his foot down and declared that I am no longer allowed to do it, at\nleast until he goes on holiday at the end of next week, after which he doesn\u2019t\nreally care what I do as he will be shoulder deep in yoga and sundowners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, what is this\nnasty habit that has got me this ban? \nNose picking? Playing B*Witched\non Spotify? Cattle rustling? No, none of these, in fact it\u2019s something far\nmore prosaic, that we all do, and get away with, everyday \u2013 yep, it\u2019s called\nreading the news. Now, I\u2019m not talking\nabout doing my best Moira Stewart impersonation or wearing Sir Robin Day\nbowties, since these are already on the blacklist, but more about the keeping-myself-up-to-date-with-current-affairs\naspect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By all accounts\nit makes me ranty. Ranty, moi, how very\ndare you? It all starts over breakfast\nwhen I flick through the BBC News whilst the dog patiently waits for his\nwalk. Whilst on the common with Rufus,\nthe aforementioned dog, a particularly annoying and seemingly unstoppable App\nthat Samsung have installed, pings me constantly with breaking news. This news is never about cats being rescued\nfrom trees or old ladies being helped across the road but more about bigger\ncats becoming extinct, trees being destroyed for \u2018industry\u2019, or old ladies\nbeing knocked down whilst doing the shopping. \nAs I still only have Rufus to talk to at this point and his feelings for\ncats are typically canine, I have to continue with my inner seethe until I get\nto work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And then my exasperation\nbecomes too much as I explode in indignation. \nPoor Wayne has to nod and tut appropriately, whilst surreptitiously placing\nhis bets for the 2.15 at Lingfield, as I rant about the state of the world, the\ncruelty of mankind, the seemingly flippant attitude of some to the value of a\nhuman life, the overpayment of footballers, the parlous nature of politics and\npoliticians and \u2026. well, you get the gist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So I\u2019m banned, which\nis a bit of a bind when it comes to writing this email, since it is usually\nheavily propped up by some sort of news roundup. So I\u2019m not entirely sure what to write about\nnow, as there is also an embargo in place on writing about football or rugby \u2013\nfor many of the same reasons as the news ban is in place \u2013 such is the life of\na Spurs fan and an England rugby fan. \nAnd let\u2019s not talk about cricket. \nBut if you fancy a rant about footballers and haven\u2019t seen it already\nthen <\/p>\n\n\n\n