Christenings and Pedantry

I have been meaning to post a little pictographic something for a little while. I shall keep you in suspense no longer.

Last Sunday saw the Christening of the most recent addition to the barbarian horde that infests the grace and favour apartment.

As one has come to expect, Lady P-G pulled out all the stops and produced an absolutely staggering feast. The cake (see picture, left) was simply delicious, laced as it was with a small bottle of this, which we had liberated from its place of origin at the end of a delightful trip earlier this year.

Here is the good Lady P-G herself, attending to her signature dish - the incomparably exquisite tarte au citron. Michael Winner, to pluck a name entirely at random, would be compelled to describe it as "historic". Which brings me neatly back to weightier matters - pedantry. You will forgive your "keen-as-mustard" Pedant-General a small leap of joy when he saw this. I couldn't resist adding my ha'p'orth. Indeed, the author saw fit, subsequently, to give me a plug, which is extraordinarily kind of him. Many thanks, Andrew: Your stuff is first rate too.

And here is the candidate himself, basking in the fond attentions of one of his charming Godmothers. She surpassed herself, being the sort of Advertising/ Creative/ Marketing/ trendy types that she is, by giving him a "time capsule" as a Christening present, the contents of which all date from his year of birth. Amongst the many items therein was this. Fantastic! The child is comfortably short of his first birthday and already he is equipped to distinguish between "may" and "might", or "elder" and "older", or even "extempore" and "impromptu". Truly, he is a master Pedant-General in more ways than one.

I am also indebted to Katie - see 8th comment or so here for raising the topic of that venerable body of men: the Royal Company of Archers. As you can see, we had the privilege of the protection of the Queen's Bodyguard for the duration. Mr Seat, who knows about these things, declares that they only parade when HM is in town. Either he is wrong - which I hold to be unlikely - or Lady P-G isn't telling us something about her royal heritage. Either way, I think you will all agree that the hat is indeed magnificent.

But wait! The sharper of the readers of this blog will spot that this post is incomplete. We have had but TWO references to pedantry.

It would be a crime to suggest that this is just making up the numbers. Bystander always writes well and gives us all a remarkable insight to a world that, I suspect, many of us never see. A worthy tributary into the river of human knowledge.

Now, if you will excuse me, I must return to the preparations for the onslaught this weekend. If I am not mistaken, that is the gentle tinkle of the doorbell. It is the postman, with my consignment of landmines. Just in time!