Womenly Wise Ways

I've been reliably, and hysterically, informed, by both my wife and daughter, that the following took place in our home only a few days ago.

I was ensconced in my luxury attic conversation/study/den, music on while listening to the Hibs v Falkirk game live. Toni was downstairs cooking with Kumali.

Kumali was asked, as she often is when I am upstairs and they are downstairs, to go and tell me that food was about to be served. Kumali, as she often does, left the kitchen, wandered through the living-room and dining-room into the hall, then went two steps up from the front door to shout to me in the attic to come and eat.

I never replied. I never heard her.

A few minutes later Toni was now serving at the table and asked Kumali, "Did you tell Papa to come eat, sweetheart?"

(slightly indignant, I'm told) "Yes, I did!", replies Kumali.

"Would you go tell him again then, please?", Toni asked as she headed back into the kitchen, where music was also playing.

Kumali popped her head round the dining-room door and shouted me again to come and eat. She then waited to see if I appeared. As Toni came back from the kitchen and sat at the dining-room table, Kumali came back into the room, closed the door behind her, put her hands on her hips, drew her eyebrows in and her eyes up, then said:

"These men: they never listen to us."

Toni swears she never got it from her!