16th December 2012

For once, Friday night was a quiet one. Nan, Jamie, and Sarah were all at home or University, while the Rothwells had decamped to Kettering for Lucas’s birthday, celebrating with a ten-pin bowling party for his school friends and some old neighbours from Newark. That left just Sue and me. I rustled up Thai fish cakes, scampi and chips, and we opened a bottle of home-made red wine. We ignored the late-night shopping in Harborough (far too chilly for that nonsense) and settled down for some TV. We ended up watching a programme about a Russian landing strip at the North Pole, built to last only a couple of months for tourists and explorers, light viewing, perfectly suited to a Friday night of minimal effort.

Saturday afternoon was spent at the Rugby Club Christmas Luncheon with Sue. It was a splendid chance to catch up with friends, share some decent grub, and relax before the rugby match. Harborough were playing Lutterworth in a league fixture, and, as usual, most of the ladies departed after the meal, leaving the men to focus on the rugby and indulge in a bit of friendly taunting. Harborough hadn’t beaten Lutterworth in the last three meetings, but this time they were deserving winners. I didn’t stick around for the post-match celebrations, as Sue and I had plans to watch Brave at the Cinema Club that evening. Pixar’s finest, Sue, loved it; I tolerated it.

Sunday, the Rothwells headed to Wellingborough to see Father Christmas and his reindeer. Later, Nan, Sue, Jamie, and I went over to join them and wish Lucas a happy birthday. Meanwhile, Sarah rang to report that she and Lee had spent the afternoon at Ladybower Reservoir, braving the cold and wind.

It’s been frosty every night this week, so the wood burner has been lit by late afternoon, making the lounge wonderfully cosy by evening. Mornings have been devoted to the allotment, turning over the soil in preparation for spring. Frozen clay makes the digging much easier; it refuses to cling to the spade. Now that the allotment is fully dug, I only need to pop by to pick the last of the leeks, parsnips, and beetroot. Afternoons have been dedicated to stocking up on firewood, which, I must admit, can get a little addictive.

On Tuesday, my axe-wielding was interrupted by a visit from Nicky and Dawn, who’d come down from Thurcroft to see Nan and drop off gifts. They stopped by Willow Bank for about fifteen minutes before continuing home. Later, I drove Nan to Farndon Fields School for their Infant Christmas Production. In the past, the PTA provided transport for the senior citizens, but now everyone must make their own way; how times have changed. When I picked her up, she was full of enthusiasm, clearly entertained (and well-fed!).

Tuesday also brought Charlotte and Ellis. Charlotte had an appointment in town for her hair, and Sue took Ellis to the library for ‘Wriggly Bums,’ a story session. Unfortunately, the library was closed for renovations, so they went shopping instead. Charlotte and Ellis have a Tuesday tradition of visiting Nan for a pub lunch, so once they finished in town, that’s where they headed.

Wednesday night brought a sharp frost, down to -5°C. The following morning, I drove up to Braunston-in-Rutland to meet John Lee for a brisk walk. Thick mist obscured the scenery for the first hour, but as it cleared, the sun came out, though the temperature never rose above freezing. The hoar-frost was stunning, especially one hedge that created a bizarre optical illusion, quite tricky on the eyes! We wrapped up the walk with lunch at The Old Plough before heading home.

Friday was wet and miserable, but it ended with a lovely surprise. Suraj missed Curry Night (chicken Korma & Dupiaza) as he was at his work’s Christmas party at Wicksteed Park. After dinner, while we were entertaining the boys in the lounge, in walked Sarah. She had braved the terrible weather and motorway traffic to get home, much to our delight.

The next morning, Sarah and I walked to the Farm Shop to choose our Christmas tree. Without an estate car, we carried it back across the fields on our shoulders, taking plenty of breaks along the way. Earlier, Nan had rung to say she’d run out of tablets, so I contacted the surgery and was passed to the out-of-hours service, who promised to call back. They eventually rang, but refused to speak to me, so I passed on Nan’s number. She was out shopping and didn’t answer, prompting a slightly irate second call from the practitioner. By then, Sarah was with Nan, and the tablets were finally collected. We also discovered that Nan can now use a service at Huntingdon Gardens to drop off prescriptions for processing and delivery every Friday, hopefully solving future dramas.

As I was setting up the tree in the lounge, the Rothwells arrived. They were off to Foxton Locks, which were being drained for maintenance, and wanted to take a look. They waited for Sarah to return from Nan’s before setting off. Just as they left, Jamie arrived with a hefty haul of meat, enough to fill our freezer. He’d been working that morning and, unlike earlier in the week when he was stuck in Birmingham traffic for seven hours due to a lorry fire, he was looking forward to a shower and a night out. I put the lights on the tree and then went to watch some rugby at the club, stopping on the way to set up Nan’s tree in her flat. That afternoon, Charlotte, Sarah, and the boys decorated our tree, getting everything ready for the Christmas festivities.