London

 

It was a busy day yesterday as Janet wanted to jam in as many tourist things as possible .

Breakfast was coffee and something tasty on the hoof , then a round Robin walk, South Bank, Westminster Bridge, Parliament and Embankment .

We caught a tube to Kensington, enjoyed the Beatrix Potter exhibition and tried not to get over faced with the exhibits. My favourites were Samson Slaying a Philistine by Giambologna and Tippo’s Tiger- the automaton organ from 18th century india

I briefly showed Janet dippy the dinosaur at the National History Museum before we returned to Covent Garden for an early dinner at The Ivy, which was excellent I must admit.

A brief drink later, then it was The Lion King at The Lyceum before an amble back to the hotel.

Today, we are off to Kew Gardens then lunch with Nu 

It’s been good

London

 Lovely to see London through my sister’s eyes

She’s a new visitor 

A great night, meal in Covent Garden , soho bars and Chinatown 

Trains and Mistakes

 

Breakfast table 

Bucket of coffee time. 

I’ve just read my sister’s Facebook entry for today. 

She’s posted the itinerary I put into her Birthday Card and said she was was looking forward to the break

That pleased me no end.

We leave for London this afternoon, a day earlier than planned .

I can thank he RMT strike for the extra day

Fingers crossed the journey in uneventful .

Another coffee…I have time

Just recently I have been thinking of how to deal with someone who sporadically but ,consistently seems to enjoy pointing out my mistakes. 

At first I thought it was me being over sensitive as I’m fully aware of the legacy being a child of critical parents can leave with a person,  but after some feedback from others I realised that this friend, through whatever reason does feed on the mistakes others make too, and is in fact well known for the behaviour

I’ve ignored the comments until recently, but during a conversation they inappropriately reminded me of something I did wrong from over a year ago now!, and did so with a chuckle. 

I stopped my inner child from reacting.

It’s easy to bark back at a snappy dog and with a presence of mind , on reflection I was pleased with

I said simply and quietly “ That comment hurt my feelings “ 

I said nothing else and rode out the short embarrassed silence that followed by thinning my lips and raising my eyebrows in a kind of There Ive said it expression before leaving the situation unrushed.

All of us are often very adapt at saying nothing in situations like these, and I include myself very much in this statement as I can often pick up someone else’s criticism and negativity and carry it around like a badge.

This time I didn’t, and I am glad I didn’t even though it’s easier to say nothing and curl your toes in irritation.

Joni Mitchell “Both Sides Now” with Brandi Carlile Live at Newport Folk ...

This sort of broke my heart a little but uplifted it too

Tula Tula

 A new normal has begun me thinks. 

Travel chaos seems to springing up in hotspots. 

Covid has reached another hidden peak 

And The Archers have finally returned to their Friday night, 7 pm slot.

I listened to The Archers with interest last night ( For those that perhaps don’t know , The Archers is a radio 4;soap opera which has been running nightly ( except Saturdays) since 1951. It airs for under fifteen minutes a night and centres upon the farming community of Ambridge located in the Midlands) 

During the programme, the only Welsh character Natasha ( Mali Harries) has brought her newly born twins home with clueless husband Tom. Whilst the usual banal banter continued ,Natasha and her mother sang a lullaby ( Suo Gân)to the twins in Welsh, the two woman harmonising quite beautifully.

It proved to be a rather sweet moment of gentle drama and pathos in a soap, not always known for its subtly and it’s nostalgia and sense of place can be described well by the welsh word Hiraith

Recently one of our more serious and devout nurses left the hospice and I remember her gently singing the Welsh Hymm Dros Gymru’n Gwlad alongside a patient who was approaching end of life. The music to the hymn is well known to me as we sing a version of it it choir. Sibelius’ Finlandia, but there is something magic and somewhat humbling when you hear someone else sing it out, without embarrassment of self doubt.

Years ago, and I mean perhaps, twenty five years I remember watching one of the African nurses singing a lullaby to a young male patient who couldn’t sleep. The boy was paralysed from the chest down, and was on strict bed rest so she almost knelt at the side of his bed and held his hand, which she  placed under her chin so he could feel the song as well as hear it.

The lullaby was called  Tula Tula and I remember to this day how the busy  ward slowly quietened to silence as everyone, patients and staff, all stopped to listen

Conwy Estuary from Deganwy

It’s not many people that have a full scale medieval castle which dominates an estuary as a view on the way home from work.

I stopped this morning to look at the view.

And felt grateful

A Good Read

 

I’ve read most of the morning 

It’s an indulgence I rarely allow myself during the day, and it’s interesting that I only allowed myself the time to do it once every chore I could think of had already been completed. 

I take after my mother in that respect.

She would only have a drink once all the hoovering had been done

Little Women

 Grosvenor Park Open AirTheatre was holding their version of Little Women tonight

The night the heatwave properly broke and the heavens opened.

But it was fun

My sister and I got incredibly wet

The open air theatre produces bawdy, musical and comic versions of classic novels and reworked Little Women into a 1914 Edwardian Chester drama with the March sisters , working in ammunition factories, nursing soldiers in hospital and with Laurie going off to war in the trenches.

It worked rather well, which is surprising. 

The actors were as soaked as the audience which endeared us, especially to the doomed Beth , who slipped and fell flat on her face on stage just before her death.

A death which was incredibly moving , given the lightness of the production.

I’ve always remembered her matter of fact speech to sister Jo

“ I have a feeling that it never was intended I should live long. I'm not like the rest of you. I never made any plans about what I'd do when I grew up. I never thought of being married, as you all did. I couldn't seem to imagine myself anything but stupid little Beth, trotting about at home, of no use anywhere but there. I never wanted to go away, and the hard part now is the leaving you all. I'm not afraid, but it seems as if I should be homesick for you even in heaven."

You can see the rain

Ive had a nice week…..working sat and sunday