The Husband recently had a birthday, and he (and, I for that matter) pretty much have everything we need at this time of our lives, if you discount the big win on the lottery of course.

He has a wish list, and it contains things that are ridiculously unaffordable - the latest motorbike that would cost as much as a house is one of them, but there are modest wishes too – a lifetime supply of car keys that don’t move around on their own, or weeds that dig themselves up…. you get my drift.

I have given up putting things on a ‘wish list’ as I struggle to find things to add to it. Well, of course, I wish to try a cruise, I wish for a new car – even wish for something more modest, like finding a pair of shoes that actually fit and look smart as well as letting me walk in a straight line (owners of towering heels will know what I mean).

Patience

One thing I do wish I had more of is patience – they say ‘patience is a virtue’, and it is one thing to nod knowingly when you hear the phrase, and another to express patience. Minor impatience could include tapping your fingers while waiting for the kettle to boil, or impatience in a supermarket checkout queue when someone ahead of you takes forever to count out the right money in small change, to major impatience – some instances where you have to count to ten before you blow your top.

In Christian tradition, the seven heavenly virtues are the four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude, alongside the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Hm… I don’t see patience there.

Temper

I always pride myself on not having a temper. But let me share this with you - I experienced the sharp end of someone else’s temper a few weeks ago when I had parked in an underground car park and my neighbour hadn’t quite parked in a straight line, making it difficult for me to open my door. As I squeezed myself through the not-quite-big-enough-space-for-my-rear-end, my door literally just touched Mr-Bad-Parker’s shiny big black car next to mine. Next thing I knew he was shouting at me through the window and yelling abuse at me about a scratch that I may or may not have made – I had already reversed out so there was no way of telling - but he absolutely lost it and started banging the palm of his hand on my roof. I was absolutely terrified at the time, and on reflection, if I had shouted back, knew I risked a broken nose. I fully expected to see a palm-sized dent in the roof when I shakily checked later. With a somewhat shocked face, I just continued reversing and removed myself from the situation.

Anyway, back to the wish list

This year, something affordable appeared on The Husband’s list - a trail camera. We have a constant supply of wildlife parading past the gate (according to our dogs), so he thought it would be fun to see if it is just moths and mice or something more significant. It’s an all-singing-all-dancing device about the size of a fat mobile phone and comes with a strap to fix it to a tree or whatever, but was only set up today, so have no idea if it will do what it says on the box. Watch this space. For the first time in a long while I have managed to get something he actually wanted (and was reasonably affordable) so we are both happy.

In the meantime, Christmas is coming, if anyone has a spare drone they don’t want……?

Author

Marilyn writes regularly for The Portugal News, and has lived in the Algarve for some years. A dog-lover, she has lived in Ireland, UK, Bermuda and the Isle of Man. 

Marilyn Sheridan