Twenty-first birthdays are great ocassions for family photos. I'm pictured with my father Frank, mother Sue and brother Andrew.
Twenty-first birthdays are great ocassions for family photos. I'm pictured with my father Frank, mother Sue and brother Andrew.
OPINION:
Maysie here. Mummy's not feeling purrfect today, so I've put my claw up to help her. I reckon it's because she's getting old. In between naps, I've been frantically googling to find some questions to ask her.
Q: It's 30 years since your 21st birthday. Tell us about thatquaint tradition. A: Turning 21 was a big thing back in the day. I didn't get a giant key like Mum did for everyone to sign, but I got so many presents. I had two parties - one in Wellington with friends and one in Patea with family and family friends. I insisted my cake have a cat and a teddy bear on it. I was meant to have grown out of such childish things by then. Perhaps to underline the point, Nanna gave me an Aunt Daisy cookbook. It's sad recalling how many people at the farm that day are now dead.
Q: So did you celebrate your coming of age, then head off on your OE, walk the length of Aotearoa, or get married? A: No, I went back to university.
Maysie: That is more boring than counting the hairs on my coat - or yours that I left there for that matter. Hehe.
Q: So you have always liked cats? A: I have indeed. And teddy bears. I want both on my headstone.
Q: Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Tell us about a memorable birthday. A: My 50th was memorable and not just because it was only a year ago and easier to recall. The celebrations went on for days, people were so generous and I had four cakes. My students commissioned one with a cat on it. Plus, the director of Centrepoint made sure the actors in Ladies Night paid, umm, particular attention to me on my birthday night when I was sitting in the front row. My friend's daughter-in-law still talks about how I took her mother-in-law to see strippers.
Q: I'm coughing up furballs laughing. What about birthdays that weren't so happy? A: I sat School C English on my 16th birthday and had a cold. I spent most of the exam dealing with a runny nose. I'd finally convinced my parents to send me flowers for my birthday - an exquisite orchid in a long cylinder arrived but my moment to be the envy of all the other girls disappeared faster than those birds you try to catch as the rich girls got flowers for School C.
Q: What about birthday food? A: Gran always gave me pink wafer biscuits for my birthday. One year Mum made this stunning Mother Hubbard cake. Unfortunately, the roof was made out of cardboard and you can guess what happened when the candles were lit.
Some of the guests at my Wellington 21st. Sadly, I can't remember all their names but look at all that hair. I'm the one in virginal white.
Q: I can. On to more pressing matters. Why do you leave me alone every day? I know you are not going to the supermarket because you return empty-handed. A: I go to work. Q: Work? I thought that was outlawed during Victoria's reign. Surely, it's inhumane. Do you get a chance to nap or bathe at will? A: No.
Q: What's the most horrible thing anyone ever said to you? A: Goodness, where are you getting these questions from? "I'd marry you if your mother gave me some money." Maysie: I hope you put him in the doghouse and threw away the key. Judith: What a waste of a good doghouse.
Q: Which living person would you most like to meet? A: Roger Federer. Q: What would you ask him? A: Do you have any Lindt chocolate? Maysie: Really Mummy, you can do better than that. Judith: OK, how about a doubles match - you and me against Rafa and Grant Smith?
Q: How much do I get paid for writing your column this week? A: The same as me - nothing. Maysie: Anthropomorphism really is for halfwits.
