Turn up the volume on your phone. It was minus 7 degrees F. this morning in La Crosse Wi. For all of you southerners who have never experienced it, below zero has crunchy snow sound as you can clearly hear in the clip. I am not a scientist but that is the SOUND of cold. I dressed for it with my Harris Tweed Herringbone jacket, cashmere vest, long sleeved merino wool under shirt, wool trousers with merino leggings under that. Robert Talbott ancient madder tie, Brooks brothers pocket square. Tonight we are expecting minus 11 with 30 below zero wind chills.

My favorite secular holiday. The only day a man can walk around all day with a heart-on. If you have a wife or girlfriend ( or both) tell them that if they want flowers they need to plant them this week. Remember, don't buy them flowers or chocolate. Well, maybe chocolate if you like chubby women. But beer will do that just as easily and cheaper. Trust me, they don't shave their legs for flowers or chocolate. Just trying to help. BTW, is Cupid a boy or a girl? Sometimes I just ain't sure.

Dear Members. I would love to hear your opinion about this video I created as a test for the Society’s social media platforms. It might not be of the best quality, and the voice is one I created with AI 🤖 (trying to emulate Kevin Spacey voice in House of Cards). I believe the style is ideal if we take in consideration it has been done with free tools (something that makes the process way more complex). Future shorts/reels (it’s how they’re called) will be of a better quality. I would love to see someone else making the videos (as I don’t have the time for that) while I provide the voice and music sometimes (till someone else can do that too). I also encourage everyone to check the Classroom banner at the top, courses have been expanded, updated and upgraded. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Gentlemen, By instruction of His Grace, Lord René — Gentleman-at-Liberty, Of Counsel, and, for reasons I shan’t pretend to understand, President-Elect of the Bahamas Pickleball Federation — I write to inform the Society of a temporary withdrawal from routine engagements. It appears His Grace is once again entangled in the strenuous business of Empire, which currently involves expansion, strategic sun-seeking, and a worrying number of logistics spreadsheets. As such, he shall be stepping back from active Society duties for the foreseeable future (or until further notice, whichever is less confusing). However, do not despair. A brief Sunday morning communiqué will still be issued, assuming time zones align and no one has mislaid the password to the dispatch system again (I refer, of course, to the Lisbon Incident). His Grace intends to pen additional case studies for the Society’s Elements of a Gentleman programme, a task he wishes to convey he will at the right moment approach with the usual rigour, industriousness, and faint air of aristocratic menace. Yours Respectfully, Brigadier Sir Herbert A.P. Gusset, DSO, KCB (Ret’d) Honorary Under-Secretary for Overseas Affairs to His Grace, Gentleman-at-Liberty Author of “Diplomacy in the Tropics” (Faber, withdrawn)