As I was going to Ditchling Fair........

Well,I did not dress B.Wiggins up for the dog show after all,  as I read in the programme that it had to be World War One or something arty. I tried to make him into a VAD nurse but he wouldn`t keep the cap on and I also tried covering  him in poppies for a Flanders Field but he looked so miserable and it was very hot, so we gave up. But the Fair was splendid, starting at 9am with stalls up the High Street ( no traffic all day) and we danced a sort of Strip the Willow mid morning.  Then there was the choir performance on the Green and the Fancy Dress parade, it was non stop excitement. Ninety year old A who lives next door told me she went and had a dance on the green in the evening.   To add to the enjoyment, grand daughter F and daughter in law B came from Newcastle plus the two dear little boys, my great grands, so it was a real treat.

I have finished the poetry project with the Infants. Many poems are about Football and My Cat and My Dog but there is one about Henry the Eighth  (`he was a bit mean to his wives`) and another is an interesting conversation with a witch, I now await the publication of a slim volume.

I am off to Belgium on Eurostar early on Saturday for a sort of Quaker pilgrimage. We are going to hold a Quaker Meeting near the Ypres battlefields on Sunday morning and remember all those poor chaps who went through such a terrible time 1914-18, including my Uncle Henry who was just twenty one when he was killed.. Home again in the evening.   

I had a lovely visit from my dear ex neighbours who now live in Kendal, M and D and a wonderful new poetry book from D. who had done a reading at his old church in Winchester, so we had a good catch up with news.   And next week I have a sibling reunion at brother P`s all three of us together for a few days. I have such an eventful life these days.

playing gooseberry

I have just topped and tailed a big bowlful of gooseberries from daughter J`s allotment.  To my mind, there is nothing like a gooseberry pie.  I shall make several, freeze them and then bring them forth victoriously on special occasions.and serve them with lots of cream.
We have the Ditchling Fair coming up soon, a biennial event of great importance in the village . I am trying to think of ways to dress B.Wiggins up for the dog show and am toying with the idea of The Bradley Wiggins which would entail a yellow jersey, a helmet and a little bike to be borrowed from the playgroup.I am, not sure if he will co operate though.  Our village choir will be performing on the Green and we will be belting out hits from The Sound of Music, Grease and Mama Mia., with words not altogether appropriate for our age group.
I had a good afternoon with the Year 2`s yesterday. We are still doing our Poems and Thoughts anthology and topics ranged from My Rabbit (unfortunately long dead) Art. and  My Feelings.    I have to be careful not to let them choose an unsuitable topic as I have visions of these little books going home with the children and being kept in the family archive for generations to come or perhaps not!
I really do not need to watch Springwatch on the telly here as I have so much wildlife visible from my sitting room window: rabbits(lots) squirrels (ditto) ducks, a fox, numerous assorted birds, and there are cuckoos too but only heard not seen. 

Normandy Landing

Well, we made it, my brother P and I, with our combined ages of 171 years. We had a lovely week in Normandy without ending up in A and E, or losing vital objects, or even getting seriously lost, though my navigational skills are not good.  We drove around the quiet countryside with its sleepy creamy coloured cows and no people (where are all the dogwalkers?) and eventually found our way to our gite which was homely and comfortable.   We struggled to make things work like the oven, the heaters the telly and DVD player but P coped manfully.    We enjoyed the good French food in the markets (why does it look and taste so much better than in England?) and just the wonderful Frenchness of it all.   Of course it was a great help that P speaks French like a native.   
We read a poem to each other at breakfast (a habit I picked up from the Scotts in Kendal)  and I read a brilliant book,  The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. and we watched some good films too from the collection in the cottage: Life of Pi, Marigold Hotel, Salmon Fishing on the Yemen.
B Wiggins had a good time with daughter J and family. He went walking with them on the Dorset coast ,12 miles one day.  He seems  pleased to back in Ditchling with all the familiar smalls on every tree and lamp post on our slow walks round the lanes and village. I missed him and I am glad to have his warm shape on the sofa beside me as I write this.
It is good to be home too though I made the mistake of buying several types of cheese which is stinking the bungalow out in spite of its being wrapped up well and kept in the fridge.When will I ever learn?