Do I Not Like That

Having been threatened with snow all day, it finally materialised in late afternoon. The only real test that needs to be applied to anyone wondering if they're an adult or not is how they feel about snow. Snow is a horrible, hazardous pain in the arse. And when you live on a hill it seems to cause misery all around for miles, specifically if you're the only person who lives in town who can open a particular business that will remain nameless. I still can't quite believe I was snowed out of my house for an entire week in 2010 after leaving to go to one of my MA sessions at Royal Holloway.

The main news of the day was the sudden passing of the former England and Watford manager Graham Taylor. Taylor's managerial heyday was a little before my time, having come to football as an eight year old in 1996. I have mostly come to know him as a sage like figure popping up to provide analysis on various matches. I hadn't realised until today that he took Watford from the 4th and bottom tier of English football to the top in the late 1970s and early 80s and were only denied the First Division title by Liverpool, the best team of the age by a distance, in 1983. The national job proved more of a struggle, although it's difficult to think of an England manager for whom that wasn't the case.

 I really liked the following quote of his from a Guardian article today: "“In this job you get nice things said about you and bad things said about you. The trick is not to spend any longer thinking about one than the other. In the end they are both bollocks.”

Sage words. By the way, Taylor started his managerial career at 28. Best get cracking.

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