Christmas Cards

There is less to him than meets the eye.

Must be one of my most favourite of  insults
It has been attributed to many wits but I suspect that  the actress and bonne vivante Tallulah Bankhead, was the original source.
I was only thinking about this quote whilst on my merry way delivering the Village Christmas Cards this morning.
The weather (as bloody usual) is a bit cold and wet, and even when  some of the envelopes did finally look a little dog eared and mucky by the time I had finished schelping around the mucky country lanes with bored dirty dogs in tow, I was happy that it was all a job well done!
Looking back to Trelawnyd from the farms south West of the village
Anyhow, like I was saying, I was thinking about "that quote" as I marched around.- well more specifically the original saying that was so cleverly turned around by Miss Bankhead
"There is more to him than meets the eye"
When I was waiting for the funeral of Mrs Jones to start, I fell into conversation with a chap from the village who is a farmer. He's very Welsh, very friendly and can be seen frequently around the village in his landrover,overalls and wellingtons.
The last thing you would perhaps think of when you looked at him, was that he had, over recent years, climbed numerous peaks in the Himalayas, roughed the elements in Australia's toughest Outback regions and had travelled to more countries than Alan Whicker at his most jet setting
 I was so surprised and entertained by his stories that I suggested he should write his own blog which outlined his adventures....
"it would make "Going gently" look somewhat pedestrian", I told him , "that's for sure!"


I am always reminded of  not "Judging a book by it's cover" when I spy another of the village characters battling for control over her overly aggressive collie when out for a walk.
Mrs Trellis can still be seen hurtling along the few pavements that we have here in Trelawnyd, calling out "whoa!!!!!!!!!!" with a slightly exasperated air as she is dragged from one potential safe haven to another.
Small,white haired and bespectacled, it is perhaps easy to forget that when she  was just a little younger she was solely responsible for the  safe delivery of literally thousands of babies in an inner city midwifery department.
AGAIN... books and covers come to mind!  

Anyhow I will leave you with an E Christmas Card that I received from affable despot Jason and fellow Chicken "fruit cake" Greta


Perhaps after reading this...You could think that there is "more to me than meets the eye!"
tee hee
You'd be wrong!


21 comments:

  1. I see your two friendly fruitcakes have already met my old neighbor from Brooklyn who said just that some years back when I wished him Happy Holidays.

    It's always good to remember that there's more to most people than meets the eye (and, sadly, less to some).

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  2. That's a bloody good insult - I wish I had heard it years ago.

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  3. I take it you are not eating your turkey for Christmas dinner John - surely he/she would be a bit tough by now anyway. Do agree about not judging a book by its cover - I find it is always a good idea not to say too much about any subject on first meeting, particularly with country folk. You never know what they have done, where they have been, and - more importantly - who they are related to. The farmer has countless cousins in and around the village and is related to half of it.

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  4. Ok. Love the insult. I'm so going to use it - I will find a way...I may use it on the chickens this morning.

    John, you have this amazing ability to bring your little village to life... It makes me all warm-n-mushy-and-girlie. But, then I remember your weather.

    You have crap for weather.

    California girl here - through and through. Fifty degrees is cold and trust me, you'll be hearing me complain at that.

    I know... I know... I have no zombie apocalypse skills (look how addicted I am, I can't write a single comment without the mention of zombies... I'm so screwed.)

    Nitty Gritty Momma

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  5. You bring your village and all its lovely characters to life. Thank you.

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  6. There must be more to me than meets the eye. No one could be as bland as I appear to be. The holidays are so depressing! My neighbor, our retired County Attorney once told me, "Everyone has a right to an opinion. Even you." I have been waiting for an opportunity to get revenge. Now I've got some ammunition, if I ever talk to him again.

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  7. Love the card!

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  8. Ha, I will have to remember that one while having christmas dinner with my brother in law :)

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  9. That's me! I mean "less than", not "more than". Yes, I believe that was Ms Bankhead. I have read this somewhere before, perhaps either in a Capote novella, or in a biography of Capote. Bankhead made it her business to know him.

    Nx

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  10. Going Gently could never be pedestrian.
    Love the card.

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  11. Ummm....don't shoot! It's just me!

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  12. I know plenty of people who have less than meets the eye! A charming and glossy exterior can often hide a completely banal and vacuous interior....

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  13. What a hoot! Love the card.

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  14. funny card, and you're right never judge a person by their outward appearance!!

    Gill

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  15. Thanks for the smile, John. Have a great week. ♥

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  16. That's a classy insult. Sounds like something Churchill would've said.

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  17. I think Ms Bankhead was also responsible for 'as pure as the driven slush', which is another favourite!

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  18. There is more to many people than meets the eye - I just wish they would cover it up.
    I love the e-card. Loud smiles, thank you.

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  19. My favourite Tallulah saying was about her rather than by her.

    The great Mrs Patrick Campbell (the original Eliza Dolittle) said: "Tallulah's always skating on thin ice. Everybody wants to be there when it breaks."

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  20. There is always more to people than meets the eye - some good and some bad !
    There is an elderly lady in our village, such a loyal customer at the shop. She was a nurse in Burma amongs other things. To a lot of people who don't bother to make conversation with her ( which she loves ) she's just an old woman.

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  21. Looooove that card!!!! Wish I'd designed it!

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