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.

Small is Beautiful…

We had some spare time and found out that this exhibition had been extended but was due to close. Sue and I travelled into town, to South Kensington where it was being held. There many artists from around the world that make small works of art had some of their pieces on display (small figures in dioramas hidden in the world, small figures interacting with the real world in amusing ways, paper folding, miniature crocheting, model houses and furniture, tiny animals, pencil lead carvings, and art in the eye of a needle). Absolutely fascinating stuff. 

Artists included – Lisa Swerling, Gaspard Mitz, Minimiam, Christopher Nordstrom, Camille Ortoli, Tank & Popek, Samsofy, Slinkachu, Vincent Bal, Nicolas Guerin, Jeremy Okyel, Thomas Doyle, Simon Laveuve, Ronan-Jim Sevellec, Jasenko Dordevic, Frank Kunert, Trsitan Blondeau, Jilia Cissell, Esha Bijutkar, Mulvany & Rogers, NVIllustration, Basia Wesolowska, Max Dorey, Le Mini Di Claudia, Nils Lagergren, Lucia Dolgopolova, Victoria Rose Richards, Ana Sofia Casaverde, Chris Malcomson, Marc Giai-Miniet, Negar Faal, David A Lindon, Merlijn Van De Sande, Juho Konkkola.

Small Is Beautiful

Nuptial Celebrations…

Sue, Deb and I were invited to the reception of two of Jamie’s close friends, Chris & Jo, to celebrate their wedding. It was a lively event that eventually moved back to their house. The couple looked amazing and happy, and we understand their wedding transport was by bike taxi. We unfortunately encounter a young man who had just been attacked and had to assist him until the police arrived. It was a late finish for us and we eventually climbed into bed at 4am.

A Good Fair…

After many years we revisited the Carshalton Environmental Fair which was in Carshalton Park near where we used to live. It is a small and quirky affair but with the good weather it was packed with revellers.

Dogs on the Beach…

On of our favourite beaches to visit with friends that have dogs is Ferring, where they can run free and there is a lovely café to relax in afterwards. We went with Paul & Lorraine and Linda and their five excitable dogs.

Foraging in the hedgerows…

There were plenty of blackberries in the hedgerows this year, though some were small due to the lack of rain, making up for it by being sweeter.

 

Hot Summer…

 Whilst we were away in NZ, the UK went through a heatwave, and we noticed as we arrived much of the landscape was a dry looking brown. We had to adopt the Spanish ways of closing windows and curtains during the day to keep the heat out, and to ensure we avoided the midday heat. We went for early walk under the shade of trees and ate out in the garden as the sun went down.

Another Hemisphere, another Season…

 As the restrictions to travel to NZ were relaxed, we took the opportunity to fly there for a few weeks. Sue had just given up work and my company granted me extended leave, so as it was my mum’s 80^th birthday and we had not seen family and friends for many years we decided to pay the exorbitant cost to flay out. It was along and uncomfortable flight, but we were glad to see family again.

We visited the family plot in Howick and had a look at the town where we grew up. On the Sunday we had a family lunch at a lovely place in Pukekohe called the Monarch.

Sue spent a lot of time in the kitchen putting together a buffet spread for mum’s 80^th and many of her friends came over to celebrate. It was a joyful day.

As mum was recovering from an Achilles injury, she had not been able to keep on top of the garden, and so we lent a hand and spent a good few days getting it back into shape.

When the sun shone, we took time out to visit the Auckland Botanical Garden to see the early spring flowers.

We all took a trip out to Devonport to catch up with some of mum’s friends that she had not seen for some time due to the epidemic restrictions. It was a lovely day out.

On another occasion we travelled around to the east and visited a fabulous farmers market at Clevedon and had fish and chips at Kaiaua.

I took a few small card games along with me and we played some with mum and her friends in the cul-de-sac.

The weather was not always kind to us, and it was particularly dramatic when we went to visit our friends who built a castle on a remote hilltop (Brent and Hannah). We luckily got away before the trees came down and the roads flooded.

It was nicer weather when we went out to Waiuku for the morning to stroll around the waterfront.

Sue and I took off into Auckland city for a couple of days. On the first evening we went over to Gary and Mary’s where we had a lovely dinner with them, their kids Rachel and Ben, and friends Fi and Avette. During the days we walked many miles around the town and saw places from the past like Unity Books, the Art Gallery, the Viaduct, Marbecks Records and King of Cards game shop. We had a lovely meal at the Amano restaurant (though the portions were so big we were stuffed after the starters). The main reason for the trip was to see/listen to some music at the town hall – Reb Fountain supported by Jazmine Mary. Jazmine was a bit odd and although Reb was good the microphone set up was so poor that we could not catch all the lyrics. Outside there was a weird little Winter Wonderland

Gary and I went off to look at cars at the Coffee & Cars event at Mt Smart Stadium. The weather had put a few people off, but there were still quite a few vehicles to drool over. Afterwards we met up with the girls for lunch at a garden centre (they had been around the Auckland Botanical Gardens). Later Sue and I took mum into town visiting some sites before settling in for the evening at a venue at Mission Bay to see a Trad Jazz band.

It was a nice bright day when we all went down to the Hamilton gardens, and apart from Gary taking a tumble, we had a lovely day out in the various themed garden rooms.

During our time here we caught up with other friends of ours and mums and spent some quality time with family.

Our flight home was scheduled for around midnight, so we took mum out for a last lunch before making our sad farewells and heading off to the airport. It was another very long journey before we eventually arrived home.

Spain at last…

 After being postponed twice due to Covid we finally made it to Spain for our holiday with the Whittenburys (Deb. Dave, Tom, Ollie, Sam & Steve), the Matthews (Paul & Lorraine) Deb and ourselves.

Our first stop was at Seville, where it was warm and sultry, and we spent an enjoyable evening at an outside bar. The next morning, Sue, Deb and I explored the town including the wonderful Real Alcazar. In the afternoon we picked up the cars and travelled to our fabulous villa in the hills near Villamartin. A large sprawling building with well looked after gardens and a large swimming pool. Peaceful and isolated at the end of a long, unsealed road.

Turned out I caught Covid in the last few days, but it is a mild dose and does not seem to concern the others.

After a day chilling by the pool, we took an excursion up to Ronda up in the hills.

On another day trip we travelled around some of the famous Pueblo Blanca, first Zahara del Sierra, then Grazalema.

The group split up and Sue, Deb and I took off to visit Prado del Rey (not as nice as the other white villages).

Benamahoma was another excursion with welcome relief from the sun under the trees near the river.

Arcos de la Frontera is a much bigger place, and the old town is fascinating, as too are the large number of birds of prey circling the towers.

We decamped from the villa after more than a week and returned to Seville where we had a hotel with a rooftop bar (with misters) and a view of the cathedral. It also has very hot decking and a deeper than expected pool (ask Dave about that). We went out for a lovely evening meal to celebrate Paul’s 60^th birthday at El Pasaje Tapas.

While the Whitenburys returned home, the rest of us travelled down to Cadiz, where we wandered around the old town and along by the sea as the temperature increased.

Sue and I returned home next as we were scheduled to catch our next flight in a few days.

Summertime…

 June

• -        Held a Jubilee gathering with cakes and old school party food.
• -        Back at the UK Game Expo after a couple of years, with Martin and Rhys.
• -        Bought a print from local artist called Luke Adam Hawker that was inspired by the pandemic restrictions (we also bought the book where it features in).
• -        Visited the Birtley Woodland Art Space where Paul and Lorraine have a stand.
• -        Jamie treated Sue, Deb, and I to a day out at the Dulwich Pub in the Park fair.

Springtime…

I have been a bit remis about keeping my blog up to date, so I hope to provide an update on what has happened.

February

• -        We caught up with Marc and went to the seaside at Ferring for fish & chips on a bright winter’s day.
• -        A trip to RHS Wisley is a must to catch some lovely spring flowers, and while we were there, we saw a dinosaur in the boarders (like those on sale outside a quirky shop in Gomshall.

March

• -        We found a new walk at Hurtwood and Winterfold. Beautiful countryside and a chance to see some wildlife. There is a lovely installation there that acts as a shelter and has messages on the wooden shingles.
• -        Back to RHS Wisley to see more spring blossoms
• -        Had a fire pit gathering with Chris and Carole.

April

• -        Went few a few pints at the Hope in Carshalton with Chris & Carole.
• -        Foraged wild garlic in the woods.
• -        Had a BBQ with the Whittenburys around our fire pit.
• -        Lucy’s 25^th birthday day celebrations at Chris & Carole’s
• -        A walk in the woods to see the bluebells, followed with an evening around the fire pit with Chris, Carole, Deb, and Howard.
• -        An evening out at Voodoo Ray’s in Peckham to see Cosmic Fusion blue and to have pizza with Jamie and his friends.

May

• -        As the weather improved, we spent more time outdoors in the countryside and around the fire pit with Deb and Haward.
• -        Celebrating Lynne’s 60^th birthday in Seaford.
• -        Played boardgames with Martin, and even won a couple.
• -        Celebrated Jamie’s birthday at his place with friends and family.
• -        Catching up with work friends past and present at Rob and Sally’s place.

Birthday Retreat…

This year Sue and I rented a lovely, converted barn in the wonderfully named Cackle Street for my birthday weekend. It is on the edge of Ashdown Forest and we spent a good deal of time walking through it and across the heathland. We spent a couple of cosy evenings where Sue prepared some delicious food and we snuggled up to watch a couple of movies. On our way back home, we stopped and walked around the nearby Sheffield Park. The evening we played board games and Sue cooked another delightful meal. I felt very spoiled.

Welsh Wales…

A few of us visited Cardiff for a weekend where our eldest godson Tom is at university. We explored the lovely town and harbour and especially liked the Victorian arcades and dramatic castle. We did also enjoy a few bars, such as the The Botanist and The Alchemist, and we enjoyed eating at Mowgli so much that we went there twice, and got the cookbook.

Wassail…

We made an impromptu decision to attend the Dorking Community Orchard Wassail and took Deb, Howard and bemused Jodie and Lou along with us. We first watched some Boarder style Morris in Dorking before processing up to the orchard for the ceremony around a large bonfire.

Xmas Travelling Circus…

This Christmas we were able to move about more freely as there were less strict restrictions than the previous year. This meant we went on our traditional Travelling Circus moving between friends and family gift giving and partaking of celebratory indulgences.

We spent a lovely day wondering around RHS Wisley and then went back to Howard’s for a lovely dinner.

I ventured out to the cinema and caught the new Marvel Eternals film and then we played board games with Chris and Carole.

Christmas lights were out on the houses around Westcott and one evening we took a stroll to see them.

Deb’s Caribbean themed birthday dinner went very well, and we were joined by Howard and the Browns.

A group of us had a day out in London on our anniversary visiting Borough Market, Market Porter, and Bar Y Taas.

On Christmas Eve we were entertained at the Brown’s, and on Christmas Day we were in Sutton at Barbara’s and at Deb’s with the family. On Boxing Day, we went to Whittenbury’s for a delightful meal.

In between Christmas and New Year, we watched the epic Beatles Get Back Documentary, went walking on Reigate Hill with Whittenbury’s and Matthews, and played more board games later on with the Browns. As the weather was pleasant, we had a walk to Wotton Hatch during that time.

As is often the case we spent New Year’s Eve in the comfort of our own home.

New Year’s Day a gang of us all got together and had a long walk at Leith Hill.

To complete the festive season, we attended the final night of the Glow illuminations at RHS Wisley with Deb and Howard.

Raise a Glass…

For the first time in a long while we went out, this time to the Hope in Carshalton where we had a few drinks with friends, because we could.

Booster jab…

We have both now had our booster jab, this time the Pfizer to complement our previous Astra-Zeneca. We have had sore arms around the injection site, but otherwise no side-effects.

Winter is Coming…

It is getting colder again as we move into the metrological winter and there was a slight sprinkling of snow to let us know.