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Although Aaron has been promised a sturdy third-hand greenhouse for us, the Head Gardener is determined to get some use out of two flimsy flat-packed garden centre apologies for the items that she bought but didn’t use last year. She placed them in the shelter of a corner of Aaron’s nice new fence. During the recent winds these were blown down
and some of their plastic joints smashed.
Jackie repaired these with duct tape and we nailed the structures to the fence.
As I pierced the pristine boards with nails, I thought of the pain of seeing Sam’s first cut. This was the earliest blemish on a perfect skin.
Later this afternoon Jackie drove us to West End to visit Mum; to Bitterne to drop in on the preparation for the Private View of Margery’s 90th Birthday Painting Exhibition, wittily entitled ‘Hanging Around’; and to The Farmer’s Home at Durley where we met Elizabeth for a meal.
The food and service at the pub was as first rate as ever. My choice was tender lamb shank in a lovely mint gravy, perfect new potatoes, and crisp carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli, followed by creamy Eton mess. I drank a pint of Ringwood’s best while waiting for my sister, then shared a carafe of merlot with her. Jackie drank Amstel.
Here is a portrait of Hilda Margery Clarke, the artist herself, but it is far too late for me to upload the photographs of her works that I made while the exhibition was going up around me, so I will publish those in the morning.
Good night for now.