June 2022 – Page 4 – derrickjknight

The Woman In White

Such was the immediate appeal of Wilkie Collins’s masterpiece ‘The Woman In White’ that, among other notable personages, ‘Thackeray is said to have sat up all night to read the exciting tale…..Gladstone cancelled a theatre engagement rather than interrupt his reading’. ( Vincent Starrett)

Here is the title page and frontispiece of the edition that I finished reading yesterday. Starrett’s introduction is knowledgeable and informative and contains no spoilers. Like him, I will not disclose the story.

It is perhaps fitting that the author of his other famous book, ‘The Moonstone’, accredited with being the first detective novel, has constructed a series of interwoven plots which keep us guessing from start to finish. The tense suspense is maintained throughout.

The sometimes complex characters are well drawn; dialogue is credible and clearly presented. Perhaps the author’s early legal training influenced his choice of narratives given by the different protagonists.

The prose races along without resorting to brief journalistic sentences. Descriptions of place and time are well seen, and Collins uses weather and atmosphere such as a stagnant pool, fog, or precipitations to feature the moods of his characters.

Ends are all ultimately quite naturally tied together. Why, in particular, does one Italian friend disappear from the story to emerge in an important sequence in due course?

The artist’s full page illustrations have been hand coloured after photogravure printing. The black and white drawings occupy half their pages.

Ground Floor Completed

At intervals during the day I finished reading ‘The Woman in White’ which I had neither time to review nor to scan the illustrations from The Limited Editions Club edition from 1964. I will do this tomorrow.

By early afternoon Nick had completed his transformation of our entrance hall/my office and the vestibule. In previous years he has decorated our sitting room and our kitchen to the same exemplary standard.

Once more demonstrating his flexibility he applied the final stages to the paintwork and gathered up his dust sheets which he carried upstairs where, tomorrow, he is to start on the Garden Room bedroom which we cleared as best we could for his access.

This evening we dined on succulent roast chicken; crisp roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding; sage and onion stuffing; crunchy carrots; firm Brussels sprouts; and tangy red cabbage, with tasty gravy. Jackie drank Pays de l’Aude Rosé 2020, Becky and Ian drank Zesty; and I drank more of the Durif Shiraz.

Painting, Sailboarding, And Fishing.

Returning after four days of Platinum Jubilee celebrations, and after his painstaking preparation, Nick was able to

almost complete his ground floor painting today.

Afterwards Jackie and I took a short forest drive. Sailboarders were out on the Solent against the backdrop of the Isle of Wight. The colourful expert disappeared out of sight until turning up alongside the island. His companion was receiving instruction from our shore.

A solitary fisherman was perhaps hoping for a catch or two.

This evening we all dined on Jackie’s wholesome sausage casserole, spicy red cabbage, boiled potatoes; and Becky’s crunchy vegetable bake, with which Becky drank Zesty; Jackie and Ian, premium Weisbier; and Doom Bar for me.

I Couldn’t Put It Down

This afternoon I posted https://derrickjknight.com/2022/06/05/a-knights-tale-137-jessica-knight-19-6-1949-4-7-2007/

Almost two centuries ago several prominent people sat up all night reading ‘The Woman in White’ by Wilkie Collins. I know how they felt because I couldn’t put it down this afternoon – until it came to the final televised highlights of the England/New Zealand Test Match, after which we dined on Becky’s marvellous vegetable bake in a tasty cheese sauce served with Tesco’s meaty Sticky Asian inspired pork belly with which she drank Chenin Blanc; Jackie and Ian drank Hoegaarden, Flo drank a mixed fruit juice and I drank more of the Durif Shiraz.

A Knight’s Tale (137: Jessica Knight 19.6.1949-4.7.2007)

Jessica, when diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1997, had ben told that average survival time was five years. She lived for ten years until the Fourth of July 2007. Her funeral service took place soon afterwards in a packed Southwell Minster.

At the beginning of June 2019 Louisa wished to produce a slideshow of pictures of her mother in order to recognise what would have been her 70th birthday later that month. At different spells over that early weekend I e-mailed her a selection, some of which are included here.

These two were produced in June 1974 in the garden of Droop Street.

Here, in January 1975, she picks cabbages in her parents’ garden at Bulcote.

In May that year she is reflected in the window of the Peel Institute Youth Club.

Here she stands with Michael on the threshold of our flat in Horse and Dolphin Yard, in December 1979.

Sam was two days old on 21st June 1980;

Louisa joined them in May 1982.

In 1983 there were holidays in Newark, in Devon, and in North Wales.

This trio from 1985 were made in Southern France, in Mousehole, and in my parents’ Morden home at Christmas.

On a visit to Haslemere in 1986 Sam and Louisa made a bid to return to the womb.

In June 1990, James Bird, our neighbour in Newark, brought home this coot which he had found by the roadside, and thought might survive by our pond. It disappeared after a few days.

In the first of these images from Michael and Heidi’s wedding on 5th October 1991 Jessica stands with Becky; in the next two she sits beside Werner, the bride’s father. Matthew took the top table pictures.

In August 1992 Jessica reached the summit of Place Fell. What is more surprising is that so did I – and held my nerve to take the shots.

On 4th October that year we attended my mother’s 70th birthday party. Jessica stands amid Sam, Adam, and Danni. Louisa is just out of shot.

In August 1999 Jessica was present to cheer on the builders of the great sandcastle on the beach at Instow.

While waiting for Sam’s arrival in Barbados in March 2004 Jessica and Louisa swam with turtles in the Caribbean Sea;

We all greeted him as he tottered off his boat.

Clearing Paths

Before lunch on another very hot day I posted https://derrickjknight.com/2022/06/04/a-knights-tale-136-an-eventful-move/

Jackie and Flo had spent much of yesterday afternoon and, in, Flo’s case, evening, working on weeding and clearing paths. This afternoon I carried much of the remaining refuse to the compost bins; photographed

a few more roses whose names are given in the gallery; and the paths which have been opened up.

Jackie had cleared much of Margery’s and the Cryptomeria Bed on either side of the Phantom Path, including, this morning, trimming the variegated laurel at the corner of the Gazebo Path.

The Heligan Path

and the footpath through the Weeping Birch Bed had been quite overgrown until Flo set to work on them.

The view from the chair beside the birch had been impossible to enjoy because the seat could not be reached.

Ian joined us this afternoon. He and I watched the highlights of the third day of the first Test match between England and New Zealand, then we all enjoyed our dinner of tender roast lamb; crisp roast potatoes; crunchy carrots; firm cauliflower and broccoli and soft green beans with which Jackie and our son-in-law drank Hoegaarden; Becky finished the Sauvignon Blanc and I drank The Black Stump Durif Shiraz 2021

A Knight’s Tale (136: An Eventful Move)

With Jessica’s death from multiple myeloma now a matter of time, Lindum House was sold in December 2006 and I began a return to London.

Using Chestertons, a national estate agent of renown, I had rented a one-bedroomed flat in this salubrious area of Central London. It was being refurbished. Despite my misgivings, during the six weeks prior to my occupation I was constantly assured that the work would be finished. It wasn’t. I arrived in the evening to be told I couldn’t take up residence because there was no gas certificate. Remaining firm I advised the agent to obtain one immediately because I wasn’t leaving. This meant a fitter making a hectic trip across London. A document was eventually produced. My furniture was to arrive in the middle of the night. I stayed put. There were no curtains or blinds. The shower and bedroom were full of builder’s rubble. A cupboard still contained a defunct boiler which I had been assured would be removed. Only half the new power points worked. A live wire was hanging loosely from a wall. I sat on one of the loos and was horrified to find a pool of water surrounding it when I got off. Neither of the WCs had been fixed to the floor. I decided to have a bath, turned on the hot tap and walked away. On my return the bath was full of cold water. The taps had been put on the wrong way round. To drain the bath took an age. Goodness knows why. The gas cooker was subsequently declared unsafe. I could have blown myself up. There was no splashback to the kitchen sink, and the kickboard fell off when I was nowhere near it. I could go on. However, you’ve got the picture.

Most of these problems emerged during the three weeks I was there. I would visit the agent with a supplementary list almost daily. On one occasion, when I said I’d had enough, the agent said she’d see if the landlord would release me from my contract. ‘Landlord release me!’, I screamed. I went into a high-pitched rant. When I’d finally finished there wasn’t another client in this vast open plan office just off Marble Arch. I’d cleared it.

There just has to be a washing machine in this story. Except there wasn’t. There should have been. But it never arrived. When I’d accumulated several bags of washing I gave the agent a choice. She could either pay for a visit to the laundrette or I would bring her my laundry and drop it in the middle of her office. She took the payment option.

The Newark removal firm had asked to arrive in the middle of the night because of anticipated parking problems. I left warning notes for the other tenants and waited up. The removers didn’t arrive until early in the morning when it was pouring with rain.

I then developed only my second bout of bronchitis. The first had been when I moved out of Amity Grove thirty five years before.

I eventually received a total refund and a very nice three-bedroomed mews house off Bayswater Road for the same price.

Dad Minding The Babies

Yesterday I had featured the bigger picture of the garden. Today, with the diffused light that comes from overcast skies and is consequently much kinder to photographers

I focussed largely on the individual blooms. As usual, the gallery contains individual titles.

Yesterday a frantic flapping and sounds of a rapid departure from behind the Shady Path trellis alerted me to a nest containing three blackbird’s eggs.

Today a male had returned to mind the unhatched triplets. I didn’t get too close.

Flo weeded paths and Jackie continued planting this afternoon.

This evening we all dined on oven fish and chips, green peas, pickled onions and cucumbers with which Jackie and I both drank Phantom River Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and Becky and Flo didn’t.

From One Scent To Another

The usual division of labour applied to garden maintenance this searingly hot day, although Flo had worked until it was too long after dark to see, finishing the last of the compost and plants; and filling our score of watering cans.

As soon as I had prised my nostrils from the scented rose bushes, had a long sit down and a cold drink of water, I staggered round the garden with my camera.

Then I sunk my nose into the bookishly scented ‘Woman in White’ by Wilkie Collins.

Becky joined us this evening and we all dined on pizza, prawns, and salad with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Barolo. The others abstained. Strawberries and cream were to follow.

A Birthday Outing

Nick continued his work today.

First, donning a protective mask, and doing his best to prevent dust from entering our sitting room, he rubbed down the surfaces he had filled in yesterday, then began to apply the first coat of paint which he completed during our absence this afternoon.

After lunch the three of us spent the afternoon visiting the pharmacy at Milford on Sea for advice regarding a stye I have had first beneath my left eye; Otter Nurseries and The Perfumery in Lymington to buy presents for Jackie whose birthday it is today.

Hot compresses were advised for the eye; Flo bought a compost trowel, a kneeler and three plants; I bought some Guerlain perfume.

I walked along the High Street for a while the ladies enjoyed a drink and cake in Costa Coffee. The young girl rather photobombed my shot of the older woman examining her bag.

I photographed reflections from the stream flowing under the Church Lane bridge, on way to drop in to Elizabeth for a. short while.

On our return a group of Shetland ponies were engaged in cropping the green long Pilley Street.

We returned home for a while before setting out again for Lymington to dine at Lal Quilla. The meat in each of our main courses was chicken. Mine Jaljala; Flo’s, Shashlik; Jackie’s, Sally. We shared rices, an egg paratha, a peshwari naan, and saag paneer. Jackie and I drank Kingfisher and Flo drank J2O