Strikingly Normal

Sometimes I look back on a week that is ordinary and uneventful. The week slipped through my mind like sand slips through fingers. sitting here typing, nothing stands out as being special. I cycled, I swam, I played tennis... tidied up the house, swept the leaves from my courtyard, read emails. In fact there was so much of the mundane I wonder how I got through it. 

Obviously there were some things that that happened that were out of the ordinary: there always are. It is just that I have looked back and they haven't registered -  like spending two days at the orchard this week. On Tuesday, the regular Orchard day, we had a visit from two police officers. They looked around and offered advice - most of which involved us spending money. On July 3rd this year after one act of theft and vandalism, we were offered a dedicated officer to support us. This officer was so dedicated, they didn't turn up or even contact me and then eventually another officer was assigned to our case. He and his sidekick finally arrived on October 14th. Now that is service! It took just four months and further acts of vandalism and theft before we saw a police officer in the flesh. At least I now have a contact card and a direct line now. Small progress.

On Friday, we hosted a corporate group at the orchard. I was expecting at least ten volunteers but only four turned up. They worked their socks off for six hours and promised to return to do more. Previous groups have come from all over England. Last week another corporate group had someone over from Canada mucking in and doing jobs around the orchard. In contrast, Friday's group were entirely local. Because there were only four of them, I managed to do some stuff around the orchard myself. I hardly noticed the time slip by. 

Just like school plus a beer or two

On Sunday, I met up with old school friends in Leighton Buzzard. The last time we met, I was fifty. Time really has slipped by. By the time I arrived at the venue, I was worried that I wouldn't recognise anyone. I was sure, however, that I hadn't changed at all in the intervening years. Actually, there really wasn't anything to worry about. We slipped into conversation about the old days when life was rosy and the sun always shone etc... It was lovely to see everyone and we plan to make it an annual event. Perhaps!

Back to normality, Nicholas and Naser met at my place on Saturday. We talked about all sorts, but mostly how to solve big world problems. Among ourselves, I think we have a few good solutions and they are all strikingly normal. 

Our hardworking, corporate group at the orchard

Blinded by the light

The Harvest Moon.

It is that time of the year when the sun is low in the sky and blinding. For much of my morning rides to Wolverton I cycle directly into the morning sun and it is a little bit scary especially as the canal is so close. The shadows are black and the sun flashes blindingly through the trees. For much of the trip I pedal forward into the unknown. I have become rather pleased to see a dull, overcast sky as it means I can see where I am cycling too. The thought of landing in the canal doesn't thrill me despite enjoying the odd dip in cold water.

I cycled to Potterspury last Saturday. The only way to get there is via the A508. It shouldn't have been too busy on a Saturday afternoon, but it was. Argh...At least the sun didn't blind me on this jaunt - small mercies. This is not a long trip by the way. Potterspury is the next village to where I live. Sammi, on the other hand, cycled from London to Birmingham last weekend to go to a football match. He then caught the train back and spent a short time at my place and then spent the night with Danielle before returning to Brighton. Cycling that sort of distance is more hardcore than I am up for these days.

A surprise visitor

Danielle is also into cycling. She takes the girls in the trailer which is attached to the back wheel of her bike. The girls love it and Danielle is getting fitter by the day. There is one bit of the trip between my place and hers that requires a bit of effort. This is the steep path that leads off the canal to Old Wolverton. It is a much shorter version of the British Club hill in Singapore. I make sure I am in first gear and then pedal hard from the bottom. Danielle, on the other hand, takes a speedy run up to the slope. We were cycling together. I was ahead and going slow. Danielle put a spurt on and shouted at me to get out of the way. I stopped all together and she made it up the hill. She is definitely getting fitter!!! I walked up.

Diane and Jeremy came over this weekend so we went to the Barley Mow where there was a "Sausage and Cider" festival. For this, there was a special menu with very special punctuation problems. "Vegetable's" abounded but possessed nothing. The butternut squash was homemade too... That was a treat. I would have been less impressed had it been home-grown. It takes silly English teachers to get the giggles over a menu, especially when the waitress couldn't see the funny side of it. We set off home, thinking of all the alliterated food and drink options we could celebrate... "beer and burgers", "coffee and cake". 

I also went to the Repair Cafe in Wolverton this weekend. What a treat that was. My printer now works without chewing paper. I just need to locate the spare inks now and I'm in business. What a lovely idea the repair cafe is - and so busy. It is testament to great community projects. I also picked up some homemade chutney which was on sale as a fund raiser. Wonderful...

We just need to get through the winter now. 

As time slips by

Melanie pointing to her house across the valley

This week was quite a week. It was a week when Storm Amy whipped through parts of the UK and disrupted life for many, Meanwhile, I made it to Shropshire to visit my old neighbour, Melanie. We had both lived on Dairy Farm so naturally we talked a lot about the "old" days. We know that Dairy Farm isn't what it once was. The peace has been punctured and the greenery demolished. Since I left, there has been so much construction outside the condo and most of Pang Sua forest is no more. There is now a three-lane road that now runs past our once quiet haven. It is sad. Our days there were happy ones.

Melanie now lives in a small hamlet whose name sounds a bit like it could have belonged to a 1930s war correspondent. I could imagine Whitcott Keysett slamming the keys on his Olivetti to get his latest updates dispatched to a national newspaper in another country. They don't name people like that anymore. I have a thing about English place names probably as a result of being brought up in Leighton Be Buggered.  

Melanie's house

Melanie's house in Whitcott Keysett overlooks a valley. It is a wonderful, listed barn set in quite a lot of grounds. Apparently Mark took three days mowing the "lawn"!!! It was from that barn that we saw the driving rain from Amy cross the valley between us and Clun, the nearest town. Fortunately, my trips to and from there weren't affected by the weather. The biggest problem  on my trip was the single-track roads. If you meet another vehicle, you have to reverse. On the way to the house I had to do this three times - something Melanie was surprised at because she told me there is very little traffic on the roads. Then when we walked to Clun, it was busy again. So I am to be blamed for the unusual busy-ness. Hopefully the traffic has calmed down now I am home again. 

The area is close to Offa's Dyke. This is something I plan to walk when my left foot has been repaired. We did a bit of walking and ended up in a pub. It was one of those pubs where other tables join in conversations. I was duly told off for pronouncing "Clun" wrongly - embarrassing! Other than that, it was a joy to learn about the locality; and what I learnt, I fell in love with. Melanie has found a really wonderful part of the country to settle in.

On the world front, I am now in conversation with people I know who have already bought my book. These few people come from four continents. So while I might not have quite hit the "best seller" list, I have got a wide reach. As time slips by, I might actually get the books I ordered delivered to my door. I want to hold one in my hand! How pathetic of me.

PS. Last week I mentioned that Jewish people worldwide would need to look over their shoulders after all that has happened in Gaza. Then this week, we had news of a Synagogue being targeted in Manchester. On that same day as two people died in Manchester, another thirty-five were killed by the IDF in Gaza. Sadly, those thirty-five aren't important enough for us to pause and mourn while for the two who were killed in Manchester, we have been asked to respect Jewish rituals put gatherings and protests on hold. Total bias in our media breeds contempt for the actions of our government, sad to say.   

We were hopeful...