Tag Archives: cns

Slow fortnight in Canada

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Line-up at Palmer Circle: Jackson, Oliver, Seth, Amy and Sophie.
Line-up at Palmer Circle: Jackson, Oliver, Seth, Amy and Sophie.

Returned on Sunday from a fortnight in Canada, staying with the Murrays in Caledon – most of the time with Chrissy and her children, and all of the time with David, Oliver and Amy. Quite a strange time, really, in that we simply stayed at 88 Palmer Circle nearly the whole holiday  and read books, plus playing a little croquet and badminton. The weather was mostly very hot, and the mosquitoes and other insects were biting.

My attempts to get Oliver and Amy to Niagara came to nothing, mainly because none of the three vehicles available could take seven people. Instead David, Chrissy and the children went into Toronto on the second Thursday (making use of the subway from Kipling), summited the CN Tower and visited the Aquarium. Roger and I assisted in the transportation to Kipling, both ways. The next day the Vanderkooy children departed, heading for camp somewhere up north.

Dot came to Kipling with us in the morning, and Roger took us to Glen Williams, a delightful little village with a cafe that served proper tea. There was also an art studio, glass-blowing and a river. We came home the pretty way, close by Forks of the Credit national park on the Niagara Escarpment, which we visited properly on the Saturday morning – yes, the day we came home.

Forks of the Credit sounds more like a financial institution than a national park, but it is in fact a beautiful stretch of wild land (the Credit is a river). We walked to near a waterfall and caught a glimpse of it, but the proper viewing platform was closed for safety reasons. On the way back, Dot and I took a short cut which no-one else believed was there (possibly excepting David and Oliver, who did the polite thing and stayed with their hosts) and got well ahead. A small but significant triumph.

Following this we went to Erin, where there was an excellent fish and chip shop, followed by a stop at Alton Mills Arts Centre, which was impressive. Beautifully landscaped and with good quality artists. Oliver, Dot and I got separated from the others and visited  the mill race, which was spectacular, then stopped at the cafe, where Dot showed the assistant how to make tea.

Earlier in the week the girls went shopping at Don Mills shopping complex while the boys went to the Nottawasaga Inn Resort, where we played mini golf, table tennis and table hockey. We also went on various slot machines, and Oliver managed to obtain gifts for Amy and Sophie. We also had lunch in the restaurant, with which we were not very impressed, mainly because of the strangely tasting water. Good view, though.

Other than that our only outing was on Tuesday 27th – our wedding anniversary – to the Blu restaurant in Yorkville, Toronto, for an evening meal. This was excellent; even though we arrived quite late, the staff were very friendly and helpful (I think Roger’s brother Rob knew the waitress and had primed her). The food was first class, and we got an anniversary cake too! OK, the price we paid was very high (over $500) but for a special occasion it was worth it.

I almost forgot: we did have another couple of outings to buy food with David and Chrissy, and I took a couple of short walks, one of them with Dot. Chrissy also took us to the rail crossing on Mount Hope Road, because  … well, because we wanted to go.

At Forks of the Credit
At Forks of the Credit

During the fortnight we read a number of books, mostly recommended by Barbara. They were: The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, by Rachel Joyce; Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander; A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra; The Great Gatsby, by F Scott Fitzgerald; The Afterlife of Stars by Joseph Kertes; and two funny books by Nora Ephron – I Feel Bad about my Neck and I Remember Nothing.

The Joyce was brilliant, the Alexander intriguing ( a near-death experience), the Marra a complex but mainly good novel set in war-torn Chechnya, the Kertes a clever (sometimes too clever) novel of brothers escaping from Hungary, and the Fitzgerald classy.

I also wrote a few poems and walked into the pool with my iPhone in my pocket. Attempts to save it by putting it into rice proved futile, and yesterday I obtained a new iPhone 6 from O2. I had been planning to get one anyway; so I was not as distraught as I might have been.

The week was haunted by a guinea pig, which was resident in the girls’ room and which seemed to be causing serious allergy problems for Barbara. Fortunately, not for anyone else. She survived, but was clearly uncomfortable much of the time.

Barbara is writing a cookery book, and the first week consisted of meals that were destined for it – all of them delicious. On one occasion Chrissy’s friend Michelle, her children Jackson and Ryan and her parents (Lynn and Jim) came for lunch; and on another a couple of business colleagues – Rick and Shirley – with the addition of Rob Murray, who proved pleasant and entertaining but looked gaunt.

The journey both ways were largely uneventful. On the way there David had organised everything, and he and Chrissy were with us and the children. On the way back it was just us and the children. First problem was that Amy had to unwrap her present for her Mum at customs. This did not go down well, but she recovered. We distracted her agony by going to a restaurant in the airport that used iPads to order, and Oliver demonstrated his expertise. Good food too.

The flight was normal, but in England it was very warm, and we had difficulty finding the bus at first (I hadn’t noticed instructions were on the ticket). It was a long trip to the car park, via the North Terminal, but that was nothing compared to the journey from there to South Mimms, where Vicky was waiting. There were two accidents on the M23, holding us up, and the M25 was agonisingly slow: we came to a halt repeatedly. The children went to sleep until we speeded up nearer our destination.

Vicky, who had gone blonde, was cheerful despite her long wait, and we handed over successfully. Then we had quite a bit to eat in Starbuck’s, as well as drinks and drove home. I almost dozed off once, but was roused by rumble strips, and we paused for fresh air at the A11 Monument.

Happily our brown bin had been emptied, and although our parasol had been blown on to the bird bath, no damage resulted. We watched reruns of the Third Test, made do with minimal repast and went to bed about 10.30pm.

My talk to the CNS Old Boys on the Friday before our holiday went well after Dot dashed home to get a connector for the computer. The food at the White Horse in Trowse was also good, and the tour of the Norfolk Record Office that preceded it was excellent too. our journey to Gatwick was also fairly smooth, although after we were dropped by the APH bus at the airport we had a bit of a problem finding the hotel (there was a tunnel direct from the airport, but we didn’t know that). The room was OK, but we had trouble finding a small amount of food and eventually restored to a bar snack. The staff were all very friendly, though.

Since getting home we’ve been in a bit of a haze, but I had my glasses fixed after getting the iPhone 6, which I’m very pleased with. We’ve also unpacked, of course, been to the supermarket, had our hair cut by Linda (today) and sorted out stuff for the bins, including a particularly ugly food caddy.

I’ve also been to an Archant coffee morning, and Dot has been to see her Aunt Ethel, who is not at all well. Still not back in phase, and we have cake and compline tonight, though I’m not sure who’s coming.

Guildhall controversy riddle horror

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Dot at the BBC, with Mary Thrower and Julia Ann Houseago
Dot at the BBC, with Mary Thrower and Julia Ann Houseago

I should probably not have contested the date of completion of the Guildhall during the lunchtime quiz at the CNS Class of 61 reunion event on Sunday. I have now been earmarked as a troublemaker and almost a sore loser, despite the fact that getting the question right would not have given our team anything like the total of the actual winners.

In case you’re surprised that I should have the faintest idea when Norwich Guildhall was finished, or care, the information happens to be part of the Paston Walk round Norwich that I devised some time ago. And it’s 1453, since you ask. However, the quizmaster had 1412, because that’s when the basic structure was completed. However, the windows weren’t put in till 1453, and if you think a house without windows is finished, I invite you to live in one. I tried to remain dignified about it, but my case comes up next week.

Just kidding. It was an excellent day, starting with a tour of the BBC and ending with a tour of said Guildhall (which should have settled the matter, but didn’t). In between we had an excellent lunch at Loch Fyne. We were accompanied by Fred and Sue, who had been intending to stay the devious night but in the end arrived early on the Sunday morning, following a mini-crisis with Sue’s aged mother. And about 34 others, of course.

On Monday, which was a bank holiday, Dot decided to spring-clean the garage. It was a pleasant, sunny day, but everything has gone downhill since then. On the plus side, the garage is much clearer, and I have sorted all my tools out. I have 27 screwdrivers. Dot is well on her way to sorting out her sewing basket (once you get started on this sort of thing … ). On the minus side, there is a massive amount of stuff heading for the tip or the charity shop, it’s raining, and one of my car tyres is looking very flat. I’ve tested it, and it’s about 14 psi. The question is, does it have a puncture, or is it just losing interest?

It’s Julian Week, and I’ve been to three talks at the library – one by Karen Smyth on the literary aspects, one by Sophie Cabot on the world Julian lived in (I thought it was going to be about Norwich, but no) and one today on the link between Julian and T S Eliot – Little Gidding in particular. The guy who gave today’s talk read Little Gidding, which was worth the walk through the rain on its own, but he had some interesting things to say too. Dot managed to get to two of the three, and we’re going to one tomorrow. Eleanor was there today, and Lucy Edwards yesterday.

The talks are in the library – an environment that turned out to be surprisingly loud. Today a man turned up 25 minutes late for a 20-minute talk, which meant he plonked himself down after the talk was supposed to have finished and about three minutes before it actually did. I’m sure he had a good reason for this, as I’m sure the mother did yesterday who thought a talk about a mystic writer was just the thing for her toddler. People are weird.

Returning from yesterday’s evening talk, Dot and I had an impromptu evening meal at Prezzos, which was unexpectedly nice.

We had our hair cut at the second attempt yesterday, and we’ve paid for our holiday in Iona, thankfully organised by Anna. I was astonished to discover that to get from Norwich to Glasgow by air, you have to change at Manchester. That’s like going by train to Brundall and having to change at Trowse.

Dot did the first of a series of P4C sessions at Little Plumstead school on Tuesday, and she had neglected to pick up her blood pressure pills on Saturday. So I was outside the chemist when it opened and took the pills to Little Plumstead. Also a large piece of card that wouldn’t fit in her car.

Heard today that Oliver took two wickets at cricket against another school and ran someone out with a direct hit. Excellent! Meanwhile Amy has been taking part in an athletics meet at Chesham. Good little mover.

Meandering to success

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Chronicle performing at the launch of the Paston exhibition at NRO
Chronicle performing at the launch of the Paston exhibition at NRO

In the end we needn’t have worried. UPS failed to deliver after I’d alerted next door, who were no doubt on tenterhooks all day.  In the end they delivered on Monday, less than an hour before the exhibition opened, and Dot made a special emergency trip, with the children,  to deliver the leaflets to me.

The launch went very well, with a big attendance, and Chronicle’s performance was very well received. I was at NRO from about 10.45 and got home around 5pm, having given Kay a lift to Tombland to pick up a park-and-ride bus. Sadly Lucy didn’t make it, being confined to her house with cracked ribs and in quite a bit of pain. So Peter filmed it for her.

Dot and I had picked gone down to Caddington on Sunday afternoon – the last part of the journey in torrential rain. We had tea with David and then I drove back in much better weather. It was Amy’s birthday, of course. We got her a rather nice leather jewellery case.

On Tuesday, when it rained again, we went out to see Aunt Jessie in the afternoon. The gas man arrived about the same time as we did, to service her central heating. So we sat in the dining room, which worked out quite well, as Amy was able to draw on the table. Well, on paper, but on the table. You know what I mean.

During their couple of days with us Oliver wrote a very good poem, and Amy joined in with a couple of lighter, funny ones. She also made some sugar mice (with a bit of help). There was also a certain amount of table tennis played, with Oliver frequently victorious.

We set out after lunch on Wednesday to travel to Coventry, which turned out to be quite an arduous journey, with hold-ups because of the amount of traffic. Nevertheless we met the Evetts on time at the Allesley Harvester and had a good couple of hours there.

Then Dot and I drove home – again, more arduous than expected because the A14 was closed. We travelled south on the M1 to near Bedford and took the A421. Not a bad route, though further of course.

While the children were with us we also entertained the Hendersons, who stayed overnight  on Tuesday while looking at houses in the area. All of us went to Prezzos and had a good meal.

Yesterday – a beautifully warm and sunny day – Fred and Sue arrived around 5.30pm for an evening meal with us. Today we all went to a CBSOB reunion at the law courts, where we were shown round by former pupil Mike Huggins: very well done, though I knew a lot of it from my time training journalists. We then took a walk along the river, and Dot and I won a quiz set by Adrian O’dell, thanks to a bit of knowledge from Dot (Wensum means meandering, for instance).

We ended with a good meal at the Adam and Eve (Rita still in attendance). Thanked Ray Houseago for allowing me to use his name in my column, though I’m not sure he knew what I meant. He behaved as though he did. Throwers also there. The four of us walked back along the river, had a cup of tea and then Fred and Sue left. Dot and I dozed off in front of the TV.

End of a Scottish era: the cottage is sold

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The wee house at Ballater: our home from home for more than 20 years

End of an era. The wee house at Ballater has been sold – back to the council from whom it was originally bought. One can only hope they now do something constructive with the whole site. Today we received a parcel from Ella with a memento: a small column with a Farquharson crest on it. It will be really strange being somewhere else in Ballater. It’s like losing a home: we had become so familiar with it.

Meanwhile, Dot was sitting in the garden during a momentary burst of sunshine and slight heat yesterday  when a Wildlife vehicle backed into our wall. No damage this time, but it heightens our suspicions that the fallen section mentioned earlier was indeed provoked by a collision. Maybe the cutting back of the hedge makes it easier for the rear of vehicles to reach the wall. Unexpected consequence. No word from NWT yet.

It seems a long time ago now, but David and the children left last Thursday after a really nice few days, and our ex-best man Fred arrived around 7pm the same day, staying the night so that we could all go the CNS Old Boys’ event at Dragon Hall the next morning. The latter was sunny but still pretty chilly, but it all went well. Dot immediately met someone she knew: Mary Thrower, who plays clarinet in the same orchestra as her. She is the wife of former classmate Neville, who I never knew all that well.

Adrian O’dell, the organiser of all this reunion stuff, gave us a tour of the Hall that was surprisingly informative, and we then had a talk from Peter Bussey on the Large Hadron Collider, where he has worked. He did well with a difficult subject, but it left our brains a little fuzzy. Then on to Yellows for a meal that was described later as “not quite Premier League”. But the company was good. As well as Fred, we spoke to (the Rev) Graham Drake, and others including Barnard, Chadwick and Cowell from the L stream.

We spent the rest of the day recovering from the food (amount rather than quality), but on Saturday we were out again – first at Winterton, looking unsuccessfully for an earring that Dot had lost earlier in the week, and later at the Kibbles’, where the conversation is even more filling than the food. The next two or three days were spent catching up with things that had been set aside while the grandchildren were here and exciting things were happening: I caught up with some Chronicle stuff and sent a potential blog to B J Epstein at the UEA. I was quite pleased with it, but I haven’t heard back.

Yesterday I struggled to get out of Norwich for a Chronicle meeting at Kay’s. Big hold-ups on the inner ring road and on the Aylsham road; so I diverted on to the Reepham Road and approached Wood Dalling from behind, as it were. Happily I was able to find Kay’s rather remote cottage without much trouble. We spent much of the meeting discussing the potential recording of a CD, and we did trial recordings of small sections that worked well in the end, after David (Kay’s husband) struggled to make the machine work properly. And he’s an expert. Why is sound technology so difficult?

We also talked about out plans for the year and allocated a few tasks. I am producing a script for Dragon Hall and printing some letters for reading at Paston Church at the open day in a couple of weeks’ time. We also fixed a date for rehearsal, which is good.

Now I am about to have my hair cut by Linda, then my shoulder massaged by Sharon. One of my better days.

Exploding oven and torpedoed rehearsal

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Unusual use of aeroplane at County Hall. Or maybe things are not quite as they seem…

Spring has not yet put in an appearance, despite the equinox. The air remains chill, and there is further risk of snow at the weekend. On the plus side, there is some blue sky today.

The quiz went quite well last Saturday. Our group of six came 5th out of 11, which is respectable enough not to be embarrassing, and everyone contributed. It was also fun, and the fish and chips was not too bad. The wine helped. Cold walk home, though.

I led the service on Sunday, and Margaret preached. I used a very old hymn called It is well with my soul, which I introduced by listing all the problems the composer had gone through. The hymn made quite an impact, as it had done on my poet friend Joy, who sent it to me. Funny how these old hymns still work.

The PCC meeting on Monday attracted the usual high attendance from  St Augustine’s (Dot and me) and brought a discussion on whether the church should state where it stood on controversial issues such as women bishops and gays, or indeed gay women bishops. Interesting arguments on both sides (of whether we should state where we stand), but no final decision reached.

Have almost finished the Dragon Hall leaflet; now need to get to grips with the one about the Pastons in Norwich, but I’ve been strangely lacking in energy. I’ve made an appointment with a sports injury specialist recommended by my doctor – not because I have a sports injury, but because my arm is getting worse rather than better, and there’s a chance she might be able to find out what’s wrong.

During preparations for Tuesday Group our bottom oven exploded. Happily and strangely, this had no adverse effect on the top oven, and we were able to transfer the jacket potatoes. Today a man came to repair the oven, which he did remarkably quickly and for a modest £77 – replacing an element and some other piece of gubbins which governed the display panel.

Other items which have taken up my time include stopping a couple of cheques that went missing en route to The Langleys. I have now arranged to pay Andrew’s fees by bank transfer. I have also confirmed that Fred will be joining us on April 5 for the CNSOB reunion at Dragon Hall and Yellows, which is nice. He’s the only one I know other than superficially.

Dot is spending a lot of time practising her violin to get ready for a concert by the Sillars Orchestra at the end of April. Meanwhile our band rehearsal scheduled for Sunday has been torpedoed because one member will be in Bristol. Oh well (Fleetwood Mac).

No skirt for the reunion

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Fifty years on, fifth-formers from 1961: Kiddell, Manhire, Lunn, Riches, with organiser Adrian O'dell

It was showery last Thursday. Rose a little early to take the MX5 in for service, MOT and renewal of Mazda Europe Assistance. Dot collected me, and we returned home in time to take Lucy to Dragon Hall for a meeting with Sarah about the November Paston event. We were picked up again nearly two hours later by Dot (it had started raining as predicted) and we left Lucy to buy a ticket at the station while we proceeded to Oaklands Hotel for carvery lunch with Josephine, Paul, Phil, Joy, Joe and Stephen. Food pretty good, but service unexceptional. I showed Paul a letter for him to check, requesting power of attorney for him over Kathleen’s affairs. He did check it: just as well. I thought Kathleen’s middle name was Ruth, for some reason, but she doesn’t have one. In the evening I went to a Paston trustees’ meeeting where we discussed a lease which will probably never happen. Still,  it wasn’t too onerous.

Friday started dry but quickly became very wet indeed. Went to Valerie’s funeral in early afternoon: quietly and impressively done by deacon from St John’s Cathedral. Afterwards went to Black Horse for tea and coffee with Roger, Philip, Jessie, George, Fiona, Ray and Janet. Then on to Blakeney, where we booked in and eventually met up with Alan and Rosemary, who were waiting in their room when we expected them to be at the Blakeney sun lounge. I say “sun”… Enjoyed tea and scones with them and then returned to our own hotel to await the arrival of Dave and Julia from a meeting at Ipswich. All got together successfully for evening meal.

After a very bad night (acid reflux) I was awake in good time to leave by eight o’clock without breakfast (hotel breakfast starts at 8; bathwater lukewarm) to pick up Fred from West Runton for morning at CNS reunion. Called in at Aspland Road to pick up Dot’s Scottish skirt – to show to Julia, not to wear at the reunion – and arrived at CNS about 9.30, the scheduled time. Surprisingly, most people seemed to be there already. This was a reunion of boys in the fifth form in 1961, but most of my L-stream seemed to have given it a miss. Few that I knew: Fred, Roger Prince, Adrian Manhire, Clive Monen, Richard Percival, Peter Bussey, Colin Kiddell (who lived in Tuckswood). Tony Plumb (now Friedlander) was one of the organisers. Struck up conversation with Chris Sutcliffe, who had been a chess player, and one or two others during grand tour of school. The east side new buildings were a real mess, and I lost my sense of direction very quickly. The new Arc centre I had been in before, to play chess. The old building was still quite recognisable, and about two-thirds of the field were still there – unlike the hallowed lawn in front of the building, which is now mainly a car park. We ended up in the new canteen, which is roughly where the old one was, but it overlaps into the area where the old School House stood. Here we had a coffee break and then a Speed Updating session that to be honest didn’t work too well, partly because of the difficulty of hearing what each other were saying in a crowded area.

After this Fred and I slunk away – I dropped him back at West Runton before proceeding through heavy rain to Pensthorpe and a rendezvous with Dot and the Evetts, who had already done the tour and were eating lunch. Went back into the reserve to look at the exotic birds, and we caught a post-feeding talk from a seasonal warden in the viewing room, which answered several questions (eg What bird is that?)

High water evening at Blakeney: an iPhone picture

Much better night, but Sunday was a very wet day. After breakfast we walked into Blakeney, and Dot bought two necklaces and some garden hooks before we were rejected by one restaurant (“preparing for Sunday lunch”) and found ourselves in the Blakeney Hotel again – downstairs in the Boat Room this time, with tea and coffee. Impressed by decor. Then on to Binham, where we lunched at The Chequers before embarking on a 4-mile circular walk in the continuing steady rain. Ended up at the Priory (once owned by the Pastons): quick look round the ruins, then to Memorial Hall for tea and scones. Was not going to buy any books from sale, but others lingered, so I did. One a copy signed by the author with personal comments, so could be valuable. Back at hotel I found I’d missed a call from David, so drove up the esker where I got good reception and had a Father’s Day conversation with him while he turned the mattress (well, he stopped turning the mattress while we talked…) Another good evening meal, and after drinks three of us (Dot, Dave and me) walked down to the front to look at the high tide. Beautiful evening: took picture with my iPhone.

Monday dawned bright and comparatively warm, though there was a chilly breeze. After breakfast we paid the bills and I had to get some cash to pay Dave his deposit back, having forgotten my chequebook. Meanwhile Dot booked us in at Cookies. The two of us then packed and strolled down the front, where the water was very high again. Called in at art gallery and bought some cards, then bought an ice cream and sat by duckpond like two old stagers to eat it. Then off to Cookies to meet Dave and Julia for a very predictable Cookies meal, which is either wonderful or OK, depending on your feelings about cucumber and beetroot. We then called at Wiveton fruit farm for some (wait for it) fruit and went our separate ways. We arrived home around 4pm and took it fairly easy. Found a lovely Father’s Day card from David.

Today has been dry but overcast. Dot has visited a couple of schools and I visited Kathleen so that she could sign the solicitor’s letter and confirm that her middle name is not Ruth or, in fact, anything. She was sitting up watching the tennis but very lacking in energy. No real change. Afterwards I called in at Morrisons to get food for tonight. I was working on my Writing News session for Bridges when a package was delivered: a “best of” CD by The Band – a Father’s Day present from David. So I’ve enjoyed a three-day Father’s Day, which I have to say is rather nice. Wimbledon has started, so Dot is in front of the TV a lot, and mostly awake.