Odds & Ends

Not having been to Seaford because of the weather and one thing and another I have lost track of the days and today got prepared to have my  premises tidied up for the help, a day early.  Hope I'm not losing my marbles.
Glad to say the weather has been pleasant for a couple of days though it looks now as though it might take a turn for the worse.
Yesterday I was greeted warmly by my daughter's friend from Brazil. I had not seen her for several years. She and her husband are on a six week trip to Europe.   She said she must do it before she gets too old.  She is about 30 years younger than I am!  (I didn't tell her I went to Sri Lanka, India, Singapore and Malaya when in my 70s,  and if you travelled with my husband it was guaranteed not to be a luxury trip!)
I have heard from a lady that she has been promised two tickets for the Memorial Dedication in London and has given me her mobile phone number.  Since there will be at least 5,000 people there and I don't know what she looks like it will be interesting to see if we manage to meet.
Another of my weird expression dilemmas.  "She was at his beck and call"  I must have used this expression myself and today I wondered "why beck"?   Perhaps it comes from beckon.

Weather

We really are having a most miserable June.  The TV news is all about poor people whose homes have been flooded.  What a terrible thing!  Apparently the Gulf Stream has once again changed course and moved along the South coast bringing rain and misery in its wake.  Yesterday Amanda volunteered to drive the relatives of a friend to his wife's funeral.  They set off from Hove to go to Bournemouth.  The journey was a nightmare.  Having driven through torrential downpours, floodwater and joined long slow moving traffic queues after three hours they had only reached Chichester and realised that they would be much too late for the funeral so decided reluctantly to return home.  Five hours driving, going nowhere!

When we lived in Sandgate on the coast I often grumbled at carrying the shopping up a very steep hill but when the village was flooded, as it often was at the equinox, I was glad of the raised position of our house.  The former coastguard cottages on the seafront were often inundated.  Sometimes the waves were so high the water went over the roof and down the chimney.   I once visited one of my husband's staff who lived in one of these cottages and found everything standing in water.  The teenage son's only problem seemed to be that the TV aerial had been swept away.

Back to Normal

Well the excitement, dressing up and feasting for the family wedding and theDiamond Jubilee is over and it is back to" old clothes and porridge" as the Scots say.  Went today to the Eye Hospital for my monthly scan and today the Chiropodist comes.  How mundane!
What weather we are having.  Last night there was a gale and today the trees are still being blown madly about yet sitting having my lunch in the conservatory the sun was quite hot and it was very pleasant.  Driving back home along the seafront the sea came roaring in, wave after wave topped with white foam.  It was very exciting.
I am still enjoying listening to my audio books.  I have just requested another list of titles. So marvellous and all done by volunteers. The fiction books are usually read by actors and it is wonderful to hear them switch from one voice to another, from one accent to another. Scottish, Irish, American, German so effortlessly
One piece of marvellous news.  The Queen and other members of the Royal family are to be present at the unveiling of the Bomber Command Memorial.  Did I say before that I am going to get tickets.  There were thousands of applications so I have been lucky..

Jubilee

All is excitement for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee weekend.  Last night I watched on TV Prince Charles looking at old home movies of the Royal Family.  He was delightfully natural, chuckling at his three year old self playing with his sister, Princess Anne while his mother was taking the pictures.  I think, when the time comes, he will make a good king.  Because of the glamour of the recent Royal wedding I think there has been a little too much talk of when Prince William will be king.  but this is the age of the cult of the young so I suppose it is not surprising.  (Come and visit me in the Tower for saying this.)
The Queen was such a pretty young girl.  I saw her up close at Dulwich Picture Gallery in , I  think, in 1947 the year of her marriage (and, incidentally, of mine).   I remember thinking what a lovely complexion she had.
We must hope the fine weather continues for the weekend's festivities.