‘I know they will thank me in the end,’ says our columnist, with tongue in cheek — though who knows how firmly?
Some years ago, the parents of an old friend retired from the diplomatic service. They took a flat in Maida Vale and began by choosing carpets and arranging their ethnic furniture, sourced from various Asian postings. Then, exhausted, they went into their dining room and sat down for lunch, one at each end of the mahogany dining table. And there they…
