Going Gently

Arse

I’m an arse

I’ve been caught speeding again. This time 57 in a 50 zone.

My fault it was after night shift.

I’ve now set up my sat nav at all times

It reminds me when I’m going too fast

Little else to report.

The pace of the last few days has changed to a welcomed and silent coffee at the kitchen table.

Albert is happy we are home

By the look of the white duvet cover on my bed he looks as though he’s been making snow angels

Night shift tonight

Kew

Now I know Kew Gardens well, it’s a favourite place for me and Nu to go and talk as we amble down the avenues of trees , through the glass houses and by the lakes.

On a beautiful day it’s especially impressive , and doubly so given the scorching high temperatures we’ve been experiencing recently.

Kew has been on Janet’s bucket list for ages , so it was nice for her to tick the box so to speak .

She was up in the hot house platforms like a whippet , with me in tow , but as I really don’t do heights , I refused the tree top walk ( next photo) as 60 feet is out of my play zone.

We met Nu for lunch , then tired weary but contented we jumped on the surprise surprise delayed Avanti Westcoast train home.

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