Ramblings
Individual picture titles will be found on the gallery, otherwise I will leave the title and the sun in charge.
This evening we dined on roast chicken thighs; chipolata sausages; crisp roast potatoes, parsnips and Yorkshire pudding; sage and onion stuffing; flavoursome Brussels sprouts and carrots, with tasty gravy. Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I drank Cotes de Gascogne Merlot Tannat 2019.
Storm Jorge is not due to hit us until tomorrow. Just to get us in the mood, dispiritingly drizzly rain seeped from solid slate skies throughout the day. Even heavy rain would have been more stimulating.
Mostly I read, except when I donned a raincoat and wandered around the garden testing my camera’s imperviousness to the water that
glistened all surfaces
and bejewelled crocuses sagely keeping closed;
camellias on the bushes and
on the ground;
head-bent hellebores –
even those standing proud.
I realised today why these flowers invariably hang their heads.
They come equipped with their own umbrellas.
Daffodils,
primroses,
and mahonias brighten
the beds.
Raindrops cling to boughs until sliding down to drop to the ground.
This evening we dined at The Wheel Inn. Portions are so plentiful that we both opted simply for mains. Jackie enjoyed the thick, meaty house burger with chips and salad while I chose beer battered cod, chips and peas with tartar sauce. The crispy batter was better than most fish and chip shops could produce. Mrs Knight drank Kaltenberg and I drank Rioja.
This morning, fearing for the garden during the very heavy storm we are due to experience tomorrow, Jackie wandered around our plot with her camera in order to record such an unusual array of blooms for this time of the year.
First, she had to pander to Nugget who was convinced that his fans would like to admire his back view.
Tete-a-tetes and irises were doing well,
as were snowdrops, primulas, and bergenias.
We hope a variety of camellias will survive.
The autumn sculpture has sprouted lichen curls to blend with his mottled skin.
Dragons and hellebores are hoping for the best.
Daphne odorata marginata,
wood anemones,
crocuses,
pulmonarias,
and euphorbias all add their splashes of colour which we hope will not be watered down.
For lunch we joined Mum and Elizabeth at Woodpeckers, Colton Care home.
It is my sister’s birthday.
She complimented our mother on
enjoying lasagna which is ‘foreign food’ to someone of her generation. The others also chose lasagna; my choice was cod in parsley sauce. We all enjoyed lemon tart with cream or ice cream.
After the meal Elizabeth drove Mum on a trip into the forest while we
left the birthday present on the Pilley doorstep.
A little later the two ladies arrived at our house to finish the afternoon with tea and Victoria sponge.
Jackie and I dined this evening from bowls of Hordle Chinese Take Away’s delicious fare on trays on our laps while watching recordings of the afternoon’s Six Nations rugby Internationals between Wales and Ireland and between England and Scotland. The second match took place in swirling gales and lashing rain such that neither side deserved to lose. It is a wonder that anyone could play at all. I drank Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2018.
CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE. REPEAT IF REQUIRED. THE PAIR ACCESS A GALLERY THAT CAN BE VIEWED FULL SIZE.
Today we are travelling to Leatherhead for the annual Gilbert and Sullivan production of the Godalming Operatic Society directed by Jackie’s cousin Pat O’Connell.
We intend to make our leisurely way there; join Helen, Bill, Shelly and Ron at the Travelodge hotel where we will be staying the night; watch the second half of the Six Nations rugby match; dine at an Italian restaurant with Pat, Christine, and their daughter Olivia; watch Iolanthe; repair to the bar; go to bed; get up in the morning; all breakfast in the same café; then go home. I might expand this tomorrow. If I can remember.
Before leaving I had a look at the front garden.
Outside there is a SLOW sign. Like many another traffic sign it has been left in the hedgerow after roadworks have been finished. The normal limit is 40 m.p.h. Which is largely ignored. So is the SLOW sign. Even when there are works around the bend up ahead.
Although the arch has been partially demolished by Doris Day,
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MnUrhptPSo&w=560&h=315]
the tubs on Jackie’s makeshift platform have survived.
Tete-a-tetes, snowdrops, and hellebores share the beds.
The bergenias are beginning to show signs of age.
Behind this hellebore lies a profusion of trachystemon orientalis.
Meanwhile, alongside the Dragon Bed which did not exist when we arrived, towers a pastel pink camellia. It was only when we cleared the bramble jungle that covered it that we discovered that the plant was there. This is the first year it has born a profusion of blooms.