I wrote up yesterday's report whilst Jane was out at Ikea buying various bits and pieces, and the first job of the evening when she got back was putting a picture into a newly-bought frame. How hard can that be? The first attempt was mostly figuring out how it worked - and getting it back together after putting the picture in was non-trivial. It was at this point that we noticed that the matte within the frame was slightly different heights at the top and bottom, and needless to say, a quick measure proved that we'd got it the wrong way up. On the second attempt, we measured the matte to make sure we got the picture the right way up. Except that now we were measuring from the back instead of the front... On the third attempt, we actually got it right. Thankfully, the actual hanging of the newly framed picture went without a hitch.
Soon after this, the rest of the party returned and it was time to make a start on dinner. With the aid of a large bowl of fruit punch, naturally. Unfortunately, this was one of those meals where the the cooking seems to take far longer than the recipe suggests it should. The artichokes somehow didn't work at all, so despite the time spent preparing them they had to be abandoned completely. That said, the end product was well worth the wait (doubtless aided by several times the required amount of sherry making it into the dish) - a chicken paella accompanied by a fine salad.
After dinner (along with several bottles of wine) was finished, it was time for a bit of t00by dancing before we headed out. Someone decided it would be a good idea to record some of this using Hannah's friends' video camera. This morning, we have decided that this was perhaps not such a good idea after all. No, indeed. At around 11, it was decided that we should head down to the Cube - the volunteer-run "microplex" where both Jane and Hannah help out on a regular basis. Suitably fortified, even the rain which had started was not going to dampen spirits.
The Cube was still busy when we got there, but we managed to fight our way through to the bar to get some drinks (mmmm... mead). There was some good music playing, so more t00by dancing ensued, the highlight being the somewhat unexpected Cantina Band (yes, from the original Star Wars), followed by "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" - which Jane and I felt the need to belt out at the top of our voices. We didn't actually stay that long, retreating out to the garden to cool of a little in the gentle rain, before heading back to the flat for cake and bed.
This morning, we had a full cooked breakfast - sausages, bacon, tomatoes and fried bread (plus eggs for those who actually like them). All of this was both free range and organic, and all of it was very nice. By the time we wore done eating, it was already past midday, so we started getting packed up to head out pretty much straight away - although as previously mentioned, we took the time to cringe at the previous night's video recordings. Ouch
Duty for the afternoon was to visit Granny - she was in hospital for a second hip replacement. Thankfully, the operation on the Friday night had been successful and she was already very chirpy and more comfortable than after her previous operation, 20 years ago. We stayed to talk with her for about about half an hour or so. Other than being a little hard of hearing these days, she really is a wonderful old woman - I've no doubt she'll be back to work, digging in her garden within a couple of weeks.
The final stop of my visit was for lunch with some other friends of Jane and Hannah, who have a flat in an old house on the edge of the downs. Their views are fantastic - the front looks directly out over the downs, whilst the back commands a stunning view across the valley containing central Bristol. Lunch was very much a buffet sort of thing - a couple of salads, cold cuts, bread and cheese, but all very nice. All too soon, it was time to head off to the station to begin the journey home.
Of course, like many a train journey in the UK, getting to my destination anywhere approaching on time was not really a factor. The original first leg of my journey was delayed enough that I was going to miss my first connection by miles, and as I had no way of finding if there were alternate connections from that station, I ended up waiting an hour for the next timetabled journey (which at least involved only one change instead of two), and two platform alterations later, I was on my way. Thankfully, no further calamities occurred and I even managed to get most of this written up on the way.
