Marianne

My bad mood was hormonal - no, really.  I once missed a period, had a hot flush and went to the doctor, all on the same day.  That was my menopause.  The next month normal service was resumed and looks like it will be so for ever after.  I have a ghastly headache which I've been sporting for three days now. I really do wish it would go away.

My friend Marianne is 80 tomorrow and is having a party.  It seems odd that she's 80 because I think of her as almost the same age as me.  We were at college together in Whitechapel  for 4 years which was really just an excuse to go out for a nice lunch.  Anyway, for her party I will do what I do best .... make cupcakes.  I am pondering over my design.  Our course was textiles so should I knit and weave my cakes?  I think not.

When she was six Marianne and her brother came to England from Austria with her mother as a Jewish refugee.  Her mother was a cook and went to work in various parts of the country.  Marianne has a strong Austrian accent but can't speak any language other than English.  I have no idea what became of her father.  She married a rock star, but I have never found out who, and they bought a little house near Marble Arch where she still lives today. He died very young which I always thought was sad but she never remarried and enjoys life on her own.  She has lots of frightfully showbiz, glamorous friends as well as lots of arty waifs and strays and everybody loves her.  She teaches dressmaking to asylum seekers and refugees and became a godmother by mistake to one of their children; she was invited to the christening and politely turned up to find herself in the starring role at which point to come out with "But I'm Jewish" didn't seem polite.  She learnt not to do that again but spoils her little African godson delightfully.  He's probably quite grown up now with his own kalashnikov and gang in the East End.

So it's cake making for me today, once I've ditched this nightmare of a headache.