Many Varied Happenings…

Aug

We visited Seaford with Deb and stayed with Chris & Lynne early in August. They took us out to the nearby Rathfinny wine estate, a large and spectacular vineyard, and although the weather wasn’t great, we did enjoy a lovely meal with a few bottles of local bubbly. The following day Sue bought a couple of artworks (Mechanoid Totem, Surreal No. 4 by Stefan Mucha, and an AI, along with a glass work called Henge by Fiona Christian), and in the evening we saw some music in town.  

Our (Deb, the Whittenburys, Paul & Lorraine, and Sue and I) first festival in a while was one that has been running for many years, Fairport Convention at Cropredy. It is a small event with a single stage where we saw a variety of acts (Nile Rodgers & Chic, Toyah & Robert Fripp, Wilson & Wakeman, Merry Hell, 10cc, Fisherman’s Friends, Stawbs (their last gig), Richie Owens & the Farm Bureau, Easy Star All-Stars, Kiki Dee & Carmelo Luggeri, The Joshua Burnell Band, Fairport Convention, Gilbert O’Sullivan, The Young’uns, Solstice, Beans on Toast, Morganway, Richard Digance). Most of the audience were of a certain vintage and the music was not really to our taste – not sure we would return.

Straight afterwards the gang went on a camping at Brig’s Farm in Dorset, at a site with minimal facilities in a lovely part of the world. Whilst there we visited Seatown, Lyme Regis, and River Cottage HQ and the weather was glorious throughout it all.

At the end of the month, we flew to Stockholm and visited Marc, Heather and Elises in their wonderful new house. Situated on a large island near a lovely lake, with a woodland walk around to a fabulous café.

It was crayfish season, so we had plenty of them with a variety of other Swedish delicacies. One evening we ate out at the home of Sue’s boss, Jonas, and his partner.

During our stay we also visited the ABBA the museum, took a ‘under the bridges of Stockholm’ boat tour (don’t bother with this one), and the Swedish royal palace.

Due to an UK air traffic control failure our flight was cancelled whilst we were in the lounge waiting to board. Luckily, we could stay the night with Marc & Heather, and we managed to find a replacement flight for the next day that went via Oslo.

Sept

The month started when Howard and Anne hosted an evening for the neighbours, in their garden on newly installed decking. It was lovely, convivial, and warm evening together.

The following day Howard & Anne, Deb, Sue, and I we walked into Dorking to visit Pippfest, a small music event held in town. Again, the sun had his hat on and the had a jolly time.

Whilst Sue was off on a girly weekend, I visited the Surrey Hills Wood Fair where Paul and Lorraine were showing their woodland crafts in the scorching sunshine.

Each year Open House in London allows visitors to see a different side to various places in the capital. This year we went with Jamie (and briefly Deb too) and saw a community garden (Walworth Garden Farm), a rebuilt church (St Paul’s in Lorrimore Square), and a Grand Design house (15 and a half Consort Road). Also stopped at a local brewery (Orbit Beers) for refreshments and had dinner at Peckham Cellars.

My main gift to Sue for her 60^th birthday was a holiday to London and Paris, and it started in London where had Thursday night at the spectacular St Pancras Hotel with lunch at the Midland Grand Dining Rooms. That evening we explored a place we had never been to before in London, Little Venice.

Friday morning, we took the Eurostar train to Paris and checked into our quaint room at the Monsieur Aristide Hotel in Montmartre. We took a sunset boat ride along the river and saw many of the tourist sights such as the Eifel Tower and Notre Dame as we cruised up and down the Seine with champagne in hand.

Saturday, we took an excursion out to visit Versailles. There were thousands of people and even though the place is massive, it still felt a bit of a crush in places. Looking at the lavishness of the palace and grounds, it was not a surprise the populous revolted. On our way back to the hotel we got caught up in the rugby world cup frenzy, with crowds of Irish and South-African supporters on the Metro and in bars.

On Sunday we wondered around the Montmartre district, and visited Saint-Jean church, Le Mur Des Je T’aime (I love You wall), Place du Tertre (where the artists are), the Sacre Coeur Basilica, Clos Montmartre Vinyard, au Lapin Agile, Dalida’s bust, le Passe-Muraille, came down via the Funiculaire.

Before we left on Monday, we followed an ‘Emily in Paris’ on-line tour (her apartment, the office she works at and some gardens).

A Busy Start to Summer...

 June

June started with Mark joining friends up at the UK Game Expo to participate in all things boardgame.

Early in the month we also joined the gang at Birtley Woods where Hedges & Hurdles were part of the regular craft event there.

On the 12^th Mum arrived for her long-postponed visit to the UK. Luckily the weather had improved.

The first major event was the wedding of Terry and Katharine at Aldbury church, with the reception at Pendley Manor. It was a joyous event.

The next excursion was to the Aldbury Morris annual weekend away, this time held in Shrewsbury. We stopped in at Ludlow on the way and met up with Jodie.  It was a great weekend of baldricks, bells and beer. And on our way home we stopped at Attingham, a National Trust property.

A duo from Australia called Saije, that the girls saw busking in Brighton, were playing at the Sound Lounge in Sutton and we went along to watch them perform. Very good they were too.

Sue shares her birthday with neighbour Howard, and together we went along to the Asia Ivy in Guildford and enjoyed a fabulous meal.

For Sue’s actual birthday we took over the local Grape Variety where many friends came over to celebrate her 60^th birthday.

July

One of the treats for Sue’s birthday was to go to one day of the Love Supreme Jazz Festival in Glinde, where we enjoyed music and merriment together with friends.

Mum wanted to travel north to visit family and friends and so we took her, stopping briefly in Lemington Spa on the way and the fabulous Blists Hill Victorian Town near Ironbridge. We explored Kirkham and Lytham tracing the family roots and caught up with family and friends.

The big family holiday was to Budapest with Mum, Terry & Katharine, and us. We stopped in the Astoria and spent a good few days exploring Buda and Pest in the heat of summer.

The family had a gathering at Chris & Lynnes on the weekend before mum left to return home.

A few days after mum had left, we had a gig with Deb at the Barbican to see Herbie Hancock and we watched and listened to this jazz icon play some wild music.

Sue and I rounded of the month with a visit to the Sculpture Park where we saw some crazy things lurking in the undergrowth.

An Infrequent Update…

 February

Our first break away this year was because of being invited to the wedding of a son of an old school friend of mine. We drove down to Cornwall with Deb and Kay and stopped over at Jackie’s for the night to catch up. The next morning Sue and I left the girls to spend some time together and we decamped for St Ives to stay in a lovely little Airbnb overlooking the town. Later that day we went on to David and Millie’s wedding where many of the Burroughs clan had come over from NZ to celebrate the big day.

As it was also my birthday we stayed on for a couple. We wandered around a sunny St Ives and some of the local beaches and when we went out to eat at the Sloop Inn (circa 1312) where we bumped into the Burroughs’s and had dinner with them.

Later in January we (inc Deb) went to see Rumer play at the Union Chapel. She was supported by local Dorking act TIGY and the lead singer’s (Bailey) mother – Judy Tzuke. We ate a fabulous place called the Western Laundry nearby.

During Feb a bunch of us went out to Reigate to eat at a wonderful little venue called Lebnani that specialises in Beirut soul food.

We have started trying to get together with friends for a Sunday Stroll often in local parks where we can have dogs with us and not to far from a pub where we can have a rewarding pint afterwards. We have been to several locations around Surrey and have sampled several pints too.

A sculpture called the Knife Angel was touring and on show outside the Guildford Cathedral, so we went to have a look. It is an impressively large figure made entirely out of knives and blades to symbolise the artists concerns about knife crime and to encourage handing in of weapons.

 

March

Winter is not over, and we had a dusting of snow in early March.

A group of us went to the Hope in Carshalton to celebrate Tom’s birthday. The Hope is a pub that was rescued from closure by a group of enthusiasts who then turned it into one of the best places to get a beer with a listing in the CAMRA guide.  

Later in March we went with Deb, Chris & Lynne, and Jamie to Greenwich to walk over the Dome, the weather held out and it was an interesting excursion (like trying to navigate a bouncy castle). The views were impressive.

We had a couple of gigs in London in late March – Eels at the Roundhouse and Death Cab for Cutie at the Royal Albert Hall. The music was great, but we certainly felt that perhaps we were to old for going out on a school night to these sort of events.

  

April

Spring started to make itself felt and we visited RHS Wisley to see some of the spring blooms.

Wild garlic also started to grow, and we picked a bunch which Sue turned into a tasty pesto.

Sue and I went out to the Dorking Halls to see Dave Gorman’s Powerpoint to the People comedy show, which was great.

One weekend we met Jamie in London and strolled around in what eventually became a pub crawl for which I do not recall how it ended.

An Easter get-together at the Whittenbury’s where we enjoyed good food, drink, and company.

On a particular dreary Sunday, Sue spoiled me by letting me build my toy soldiers (Bolt Action – Afrika Korps), followed by watching Dungeons & Dragons at the cinema, and culminating in a KFC dinner.

The weather has its moments and occasionally we have been able to get out and enjoy the garden.

  

May

May Day we saw some Morris dancers at Rusper before dodging showers at Nymans gardens.

A group of us celebrated Reg’s birthday at the Hope in Carshalton where the Mariners Mates were practicing sea shanties.

One Thursday we ended up in Dorking with a bite to eat and some drinks (again I seem to have had a bout of drink related amnesia as I do not remember the last shot – could be a concern).

There was an extra bank holiday to celebrate King Charles III coronation. On Saturday we watch some of the pomp and pageantry on TV before going over to Paul & Lorraine’s for a meal. Dorking is resplendent in Union Jacks. One the Sunday had a few people around for a garden party, and on Monday we popped over to the village fete for a little while before retuning home to put our feet up.

We have been busy redecorating a couple of rooms at home, the guest bedroom (for when Mum arrives for a summer holiday), and the bathroom. Once we had finished our final project, we took ourselves out and wandered around Leith Hill Place and Deepdene that have rhododendrons blooming now.

The weather started to improve (touch wood) and we had a few walks in the countryside and enjoyed a few alfresco meals. Now let’s hope it bodes well for the summer.

 

Catching Up…

 September

We heard of the Queen’s passing as we waiting to see Opera in the Tipi at the Queen’s Head in Dorking. The performers held a minute’s silence and dedicated the show to her.

We visited the wonderful RHS Wisley flower show in September and bought a few new plants that we had installed for one of the last garden parties of the year.

Sue and I went into London for the weekend to see some of the London Open House buildings followed by watching the Cuban All Stars at Boisdale. We saw the miles of queue lining the Thames waiting to pay their respects to the Queen. Some of the open buildings we visited were St Brides Church (and the crypt), Temple Bar (relocated to opposite St Pauls cathedral), and St Mary-le-Bow (playing a long peal of bells for the Queen).

The following day we met up with Jamie and walked ‘the Line’, an outdoor art trail that runs up the Lee valley from the O2 and the Thames to Stratford and the site of the Olympic stadium. We crossed the crossed the river on the exciting gondola.

One busy weekend we painted the radiators a copper colour, laid some cobblestones around the patio, and enjoyed a curry with friends at the Whittenbury’s.

October

Terry and Katharine visited in early October, and we went with them to visit the quaint Apple Fair at Leigh and then onto the Sussex Prairie Gardens. Next day visited our local National Trust property of Polsden Lacey.

Loving the changing seasons, we went to view some autumnal scenes at Winkworth Arboretum and were not disappointed.

On one of our visits to see Jamie, he took us to see the Peckham Conker championships, which to our surprise was very popular and well attended (might have something to do with being next to a pub).

Martin and I visited Marc up at his factory in Oxford and we played several games in the boardroom.

Not far from us in Guildford we saw Nerina Pallot at the intimate Boileroom venue. It was a good evening, and we were very impressed with local band TIGY who supported Nerina.

We went to church… …Hackney church, where we saw Australian act, Boy & Bear supported by Stu Larsen. A lovely looking venue it is too.

Sue and I found a new walk to explore, this time at Bookham Common. Later we went back to  Polsden Lacey where there was a fairy tale walk with sculptures around the grounds.

November

Early November we went to see Meute, a German techno marching band at Brixton Academy. They are an interesting and hard to explain sensation that really got the place jumping. Obviously, they have some very dedicated followers.

Tales from the Loop is a fabulous, fantastical, alternative reality that originally was inspired by the art of Simon Stalenhag, which has since gone on to become a role-playing game and a TV series. Now the boardgames has come out. It is a complex mechanic that is designed to have a lot of replay ability built in, however it took me several attempts to grasp the rules and a long time on the table to complete.

It has been quite warm and wet recently but have still managed to get out for a few walks in the countryside (the routes may have included a refreshment stop at a local hostelry).

Sue and I took a day off work and went to visit Petworth and the lovely surroundings. It was a lovely day out away from the office.

An intimate family dinner was had to celebrate Terry’s 75th birthday at a pub near where they live. We found out then that he had his hip replacement booked to happen soon.

We travelled to north London with Deb for an early festive gig at the Union Chapel by Ingrid Michaelson supported by Sugar & the Hi-lows. It was a fun performance in a great venue.

December

The last of our gigs for this year was a return visit to Hackney Church, this time to witness the poetic ramblings of Bonney Prince Billy.

We had a bit of a cold snap early in December (it warmed up unseasonable after that).  We visited Norbury Park where Paul & Lorraine were running a hedge laying course, luckily, we were back home as a light dusting of snow came down.

The Christmas lights are up around Westcott and a tree has been decorated on the green where carols were performed by the local choir. That and on the mulled wine succeeded in getting us into the festive spirit.

We really feel like Christmas is upon us when we travel up to Tring to join in with the long running annual carol singing that my uncle arranges. Terry seems to be recovering extraordinarily well to the hip replacement surgery.

This year was Chris and Carole’s 30 wedding anniversary, and they had a gathering around theirs to celebrate.

Sue’s mum was feeling a bit better, and we were able to take her down to visit Chris and Lynne in Seaford along with Deb. It was her first outing for a while, and I think she had a good time.

Blonde and Dark Deb both have birthdays at Christmas, so we had a buffet spread to celebrate them around ours with friends and family.

Before Christmas we regularly meet up with friends at Borough Market to buy goodies (mostly cheese) and have a few drinks.

We had a lovely evening meal out at Monica Galetti’s restaurant ‘Mere’, catching up with Fiona, Maddy before they went on a boating holiday to see the Northern Lights, and to catch up with Bexi and her boyfriend Shaf. We had a fabulous testing menu with paired wines.

Christmas dinner was held at Sue’s mum’s house, with the girls having cooked the turkey, Dave cooking the veg and Stacey bringing lamb along. A big family do!

Boxing Day was spent at Deb and Dave’s where we were treated to a rib of beef and great company, spending time with them, Reg, Tom & Ollie, Jamie, Deb and Paul & Lorraine.

Marc, Heather and Elise stopped for a few days with us across New Year before they headed back to Sweden to take possession of their new house.

January

For several years now we have had a New Year’s Day with friends, and this year we walked up Leith Hill with the Deb & Dave and Paul & Lorraine and the dogs. We had a refreshment at the pub at Coldharbour afterwards to recover.

On the last day of our holidays before we go back to work, we played a few boardgames - Ticket to Ride and Carcassonne, and I managed to win them both.

We are trying to get out more regularly for walks in the countryside either one our own or with friends, and have managed a few locally around Westcott, at Norbury Park and Headley Heath. It is our attempt to try and improve our fitness.

An evening of dance and drink to bless the apple trees for wassail at the Dorking Community Orchard. The dance troupes in attendance were the Box Hill Bedlam Morris, Mythago Morris, and Madder Mill Molly.

Flying visit from Marc before he heads of for business to Peru, dinner and talk and a game of Pan Am, which I barely won by one point.