"I'll admit I may have seen better days, but I'm still not to be had for the price of a cocktail, "(Margo Channing)
An Emotional Romp
In recent years I have two favourites game openings: Barcelona in 1992- with an opening breathtaking in a classy, arty and totally up market way (I loved the archer firing a flaming arrow to ignite the Olympic torch almost as much as Montserrat Caballé banging out "Barcelona" with the tiny Freddie Mercury hading behind her fifty foot dress)
My other favourite games had to be the 2000 romp fest that was Sydney. Two hundred drag queens dancing in front of Kylie (who was singing on top of a sixty foot flip flop) lent a certain warmness and self depreciating humour to the whole affair, which I always think was a kind of a first for the games.
You would have thought that the US with all its money and showmanship, would have produced some fantastic set pieces, but Atlanta and Lost Angeles, for me were the most disappointing games for all their excesses. China's opening today, was on the other hand, quite stunning; In fact the whole thing ticked most of my Olympic boxes. It was beautiful to look at, innovative ( The flame bearer "running" in mid air around the Bird's Nest stadium roof was a touch of genius) and not too cheesy.Oh yes we did have little snippets of pure emotion.......the 6 year old school boy hero of the recent earthquake walking hand in hand with the Chinese flag bearer left not a dry eye in the house, but generally the whole thing was wonderfully over-the-top. Best bit of the games for me.
Another mixed bag
Frank, from the Prestatyn horticultural society called in briefly to drop off some photos from the allotment open I must admit that the whole field has never looked better, even though it was the wettest day of the year
Tim's 60th
Ann, Tim, Andrew and Jayne are all being rather secretive about their efforts so I had better get my finger out and get an alternative costume sorted.......
Had a few more late donations towards the open so final total is £ 271.00 ...........even the Parish Council Treasurer was impressed...but that's another story
Allotment open
Today I have been very touched by the kindness of people in general. Despite the torrential rain (which started exactly at 6pm, the second that the allotment opened!!!!!!!!) we had around seventy to eighty people turn up in drips and drabs to support our open evening.
Through the drizzle and dead on time, I was very moved to see the old ladies of the village slowly weave their way down the lane towards the field in slow ambling support of the evening.I said to Ann that the whole scene could have been taken directly from the film Whisky Galore! (1949). Auntie Glad ( below) at ninety braved the wet with a "spirit that won the war" mentality, and those that couldn't make it like Sylvia from the flower Show and old Mrs Jones sent a huge variety of cakes to sell and dish out.
Carole and Geoff made a ton of cakes too (William stole one half of a lemon cake from Carole's dining room table earlier this afternoon) and Geoff came into his own with constructing a gazebo and a make shift tarpaulin shelter as the rain really belted down.
52 Providence Road
The weather looks a bit ropey for the allotment open tomorrow, but I guess that even if there is torrential rainfall and no one turns up, at least I will have a score of cakes and a tidy field to show for it all. Mrs Jones sent over a fruit cake this afternoon in way of an apology for not coming tomorrow ( she had minor eye surgery done today) and Flower show secretary Slyvia is sending me one of her coffee bakes later, so there will be plenty of food available. The only small fly in the ointment is that Chris is serving the cakes, so I suspect it will be a"one for you and two for me" sort of thing going on.
Sad news flying around the village is that the missing man has been found dead on the Gop...such a shame.
The Search
This evening the mountain rescue volunteers have scoured the churchyard and allotment (even checking inside the duck house) and even later a dog search team has weaved its way down the lane checking the fields and woods west of Trelawnyd.
The noise and activity has unsettled the sheep and horses in nearby paddocks, and the sound of their bleating and whinnies has been rather spooky and this of course has been somewhat exaggerated bu the fact I have had not sleep and am feeling as usual rather jittery. Awful night shift last night, a multiple trauma RTA admitted.......I can't believe that Chris and friends like Geoff actually enjoy riding death traps that are motorbikes........