Bernard Fox

            On Sunday morning I worked out the chords for the first two verses of "Quand ça balance" (When Off Balance) by Serge Gainsbourg. I don’t know if Gainsbourg wrote the verses to be musically uniform or not but Zizi Jeanmaire seems to sing each verse a little differently.

            I weighed 89.4 kilos before breakfast. 

            I took a siesta from 12:15 to 13:45. 

            I weighed 88.6 kilos before lunch. I had lettuce, tomato, avocado, a scallion and dill with raspberry vinaigrette. 

            Before taking my bike ride I restarted my computer so I wouldn’t have the same lagging problems when I got home as the day before. 

            I started my ride with one scarf and my spring gloves on. I took the gloves off at Dufferin to remove the scarf. It was quite warm and some people were in t-shirts and shorts but there’s a wind chill on a bike and I put the gloves back on at Dovercourt. Going down Ossington I felt the chill in my neck but I didn't bother putting the scarf back on. While riding into the sun on Queen my neck didn't feel cold at all. 

            I worked on my essay on George Eliot’s versus Oscar Wilde’s theory of art. I changed a few words here and there. I moved the most relevant quotes and my notes on them closer to the body of text I’ve already written so I will have better access to them when I pull them into my argument. 

            I tried to take a siesta but I couldn’t sleep so I only laid down for fifteen minutes. 

            I weighed 89.7 kilos before dinner, exactly the same as yesterday. I had lettuce, cucumber, scallion, tomato, avocado, mushroom, dill and jalapeno with raspberry vinaigrette while watching Andy Griffith. 

            In this story an English butler is on holiday cycling across the United States. While riding through Mayberry and trying to read a map at the same time he drives in front of an oncoming truck, causing the driver to crash. Barney arrests him but since Malcolm doesn’t have the $40 dollars for the damage and since Aunt Bee is away, Andy offers to let Malcolm work off his debt by housekeeping for him and Opie. Malcolm of course is an excellent housekeeper and chef and he adds many strange touches like painting faces on eggs and making elaborate toys out of paper that endears him to Opie. But having someone look after things he doesn’t need like driving him to work and dressing him, is starting to drive Andy nuts. But Andy can’t bring himself to tell Malcolm to leave. He is discussing that on the porch with Barney when Malcolm overhears. His feelings are hurt and so the next morning he is gone. When Andy realizes that Malcolm heard his conversation he goes after him and demands that he come back and finish working off his debt. Malcolm happily agrees. 

            Malcolm was played by Bernard Fox, who began in theatre when he was a child. He co-starred in the British sitcom “Three Live Wires”. He played the warlock Dr Bombay on “Bewitched”, “Tabitha” and “Passions”. He was Colonel Crittendon on “Hogan’s Heroes”; Colonel Redford on “Barnaby Jones”. He portrayed Dr Watson in “The Hound of the Baskervilles” in 1972.