Tag Archives: bernadette

Birthday meal hits spot

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Rather poor picture of our table at the Wensum View Hotel. Mary is on the left, Rachel is to the left of my vacant chair and Barbara to the right.
Rather poor picture of our table at the Wensum View Hotel. Mary is on the left, Rachel is to the left of my vacant chair and Barbara to the right. Dot is sitting next to a pilot whose name I forget.

Mary Thrower’s 70th birthday meal last Saturday turned out to be a delightful event, despite our not knowing anybody but Mary and Neville – plus, amazingly, Bernadette from Archant, who turned out to be their next-door neighbour.

The setting, despite rainy weather, was beautiful, with the room at the Wensum View Hotel looking way out over the golf course and the Wensum valley generally. The food was really delicious, despite the party being over 60 in number (quantity often reduces quality). And the six people who sat at out table were all very easy to get on with – in fact when nearly everyone had gone, our table was still all present and correct.

The number included Mary’s son Jamie (really nice guy) and his equally nice wife Rachel. I think the others were friends rather than relations: one couple came from Carleton Rode and the other from further away.

That was on Saturday. The following day I roused myself to lead the service at St Augustine’s in the presence of the new vicar, who was attending for the first time, as an observer. He stayed a long time afterwards and spoke to everyone. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of his aims is to get the two churches to do things together. That should be interesting.

The rest of the day was dull and rather oppressive: we couldn’t rouse ourselves to do anything much. But on Monday Colin came and fixed the garage door handle – which has unfortunately gone wrong since. He is coming again on Saturday. In the evening we had a PCC meeting at which for the first time in living memory St Augustine members almost made up 50% of the attendance. Howard didn’t make it, of course, but Eleanor and Judy did. I think we were a little less formal than the new vicar would have liked (what? no votes?), but no doubt there will be  conversion process, one way or the other. Simon gave a presentation on our registering as an individual charity, which you have to do when your turnover exceeds £100,000.

On Tuesday Barbara and her dog came to sort out some video for their p4c DVD and commandeered my computer to do so. I went to pay some cheques into the bank and wondered over to the Forum, where a young guy asked if I’d like to play chess (there’s a board game section in the library there). We had a good game, but he beat me after I hung a rook. I suggested he joined a local club. Enjoyed the game, but it sort of showed me I wasn’t up to what used to be my standard.

Yesterday was dull again, though warm. I got some work donned then went to Morrison’s with Dot for a fairly large bout of shopping before she disappeared to orchestra. An odd day.

Amy scoots into her ninth year

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Amy enjoying her new scooter

My granddaughter is now a year older. It happened suddenly, last Saturday, and fortunately we were on hand to help her celebrate her eighth birthday. We arrived on the Friday night, driving through pouring rain all the way, with almost ground-level  clouds. In the morning I went with David and the children to the swimming pool in Dunstable, where Oliver and Amy had their lessons. Meanwhile, Dot stayed at home and iced the chocolate cake made by David the previous night.

We gave Amy a scooter with lots of street cred, which went down very well, even when she fell off it while executing a tight turn. The children have friends in the street, and they came out to play, so that was good: Thomas and Grace, I think. Not related. After a party lunch prepared by David we played Dixit, a remarkable game  that he’d bought her which involved making up a line of a story to match cards, and then guessing the card. Actually it made a lot more sense than that. Later in the afternoon, Vicky, accompanied by Saskia(?), came to pick up the children, and we left soon afterwards, arriving back in Norwich earlier than we’d expected.

At church on Sunday I “launched” my new worship songs booklet, simply by using it for one of the hymn slots. Seemed to work all right. Howard gave a very Howard sermon, including animal noises, on how OT people might have reacted to Isaiah. In the evening Dot and I went for a meal at Anne and Philip’s in the company of Bernadette and Barry Hutchings, who live in Alpington. Touch of nostalgia there – very enjoyable, though I wasn’t feeling great, a theme which repeated all through the next few days. I took some out-of-date antibiotics, but that seemed to make things worse; so I’ve stopped. The right thing to do, I feel.

Yesterday was the final rehearsal for our Chronicle performance at Mannington Hall, complete with hats. Everyone agreed that mine suited me very well, which is a bit worrying. The hats came courtesy of Rob’s wife Penny, who is a seamstress of some repute, and we rehearsed at Rob’s house, with his grandchildren providing noises off. In the evening, with our vegetarian Bridget away with her husband, I cooked chilli con carne for the Tuesday Group, and I have to say it tasted pretty good. Well, I don’t have to, but I will.

Now I am waiting for the arrival of David, Oliver and Amy. The children will be staying with us for three days, and I am told we have to visit the Iceni village at Cockley Cley, because Amy is doing a project on Boudicca. I feel Amy would make a good Boudicca.

Hard lunch

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Back gate from Dayspring, looking towards the cliff at Paston
Back gate from Dayspring, looking towards the cliff at Paston

And now it’s turned to autumn again, quite cold and windy, though not as bad as yesterday. Dot has been out all day today – first at Overstrand as a diocesan support officer and then at Catton, introducing Philosophy4Children. Good opportunity for me to catch up on some vital jobs, but after starting reasonably well, I have tailed off badly, even sinking so low as to change my profile picture on Facebook. The trip to Sainsburys went quite well, though a couple of requests from Dot eluded me. I followed this by taking Bernadette to lunch – something I had been intending to do for some weeks, ever since she assisted me by checking some shorthand for my Hull trainees. We went to John Lewis, and she refused to accept more than a baguette – or to be ruthlessly precise, half a very hard baguette that was a real challenge to eat. I was not impressed: should have taken her to Caffe Italia.

Yesterday had a good morning service at St Augustine’s, led by Heather. I preached on Careless Tongues Cost Lives – well, not quite, but something like that. Watched Jenson Button get back on the world championship trail in the afternoon, then off to Ambient Wonder in the evening. Very few of us there, and a little chilly: the same went for the pizzas. Didn’t sleep very well last night. Don’t know why. Keep dreaming about holidays and living elsewhere, and Dot driving brilliantly. Strange. Finished Stefan Zweig. I see Stieg Larssen’s third and last book is out next month.