21st December 2015

On the 18th of November, Jamie kindly invited Sue and me over for another meal at his apartment. Once again, he showcased his culinary talents and prepared a wonderful meal, with the highlight being a delicious sweet potato mash. However, this time, there was no dessert. Harley joined us for dinner, though she made her own vegetarian dish.

The following Friday, Sue and I treated Sarah and Mia to lunch at Foxton Locks. Sarah had the day off work and came to visit her parents, which was lovely.

The weather in the following week was warm but dreadful. It rained most days, so we had little choice but to find indoor tasks to occupy ourselves. The two spare double bedrooms were painted, carpeted, and fitted with new curtains. The adjoining corridor and landing were also given the same treatment. In the weeks that followed, new beds were ordered, delivered, and set up. Charlotte sold the old single beds on Facebook.

 

 

By Sunday, we were both in need of a rest, and fortunately, we had booked a night at the ‘Last Drop Inn‘ on the moors outside Bolton. We had planned to visit Uncle Stanley, as we had promised to see him in the autumn, but had not yet managed to do so. We had stayed at the hotel before and had enjoyed the experience. The journey there went surprisingly smoothly, despite a horrendous weather forecast. We arrived early, planning a circular walk for the afternoon. However, as we ate our sandwiches in the car park, the monsoon arrived!

We watched in disappointment as the downpour battered the bonnet and windscreen, while my little Fiesta rocked violently in the fierce gusts that raced up the hillside. The beautiful views of the surrounding moorland disappeared, and the interior of the car gradually steamed up as we took our time over thermos coffee.

Magically, as we finished our meal, the rain stopped, and the surrounding countryside reappeared. Despite the access road in front of the car now resembling the Welland in flood, we exited the car and donned our waterproof walking gear. Setting off, we squelched through the hotel grounds and, guided by my trusty GPS, made our way onto the moors. The path we followed had suffered from the heavy downpour the previous night and the more recent rain we had just witnessed. As a result, it was largely underwater, with no sanctuary off-route, as stepping aside risked disappearing up to our knees in the bog.

To add to our woes, the predicted storm arrived, and although we could see where we were going, the wind made it feel like we were fighting our way through the maelstrom. I had faced similar conditions on the moors in my younger days, but I doubted Sue had encountered such inclement weather on her Worcestershire rambles. Nevertheless, she manfully stuck with it.

As we neared the top of the moor that we were to circumnavigate, I saw a particularly vicious squall advancing across the valley towards us. Noticing that it contained snow and hail, we took refuge behind a stone wall until it passed. Even so, the little bullets of ice bouncing off us stung considerably. We managed another half mile, slipping over the rain-soaked bog before the next squall forced us to shelter again behind a stone wall.

This time, when the worst had passed, we decided to head down to the road in the valley and make our way back to the hotel, beaten but not cowed.

It was still pouring when we checked into the hotel and quickly made our way to a warm room for a hot coffee. A little later, we had a rather filling carvery in the pub located inside the hotel village. Fully sated, we returned to our room and watched TV until 8 pm, before driving into Bolton to watch ‘Bridge of Spies ‘ at the local cinema. Based on true events during the Cold War, it was definitely worth a look.

The following morning, it was annoyingly still raining and blowing a gale. The TV reported that most of the North East was underwater and much of Wales was without electricity. After a satisfying breakfast, we drove through the rain to visit Uncle Stanley. He seemed in good health, as sharp as ever, and keen to talk about politics and the recent terrorist attacks in Paris. We mostly listened for the next three hours.

When we left, the weather was still poor, and I wasn’t looking forward to the return journey. However, as we hit the motorway, the rain clouds parted. There was surprisingly little traffic, and the journey home to Harborough was quick and uneventful.

The next day, I had lunch with Charlotte at the Sondes Arms in Rockingham, where the menu was extensive, and the food superb. Sue, meanwhile, was enjoying much better weather, walking with the U3A in Maidwell, and having lunch at the Stag’s Head.

A few days later, Sarah came with Mia, and Sue and I walked along the canal with them to Foxton. We had lunch there, then walked back home.

The following Saturday, Sue was due to travel to Tenbury Wells to meet up with her sister and stay with Sheila, an old family friend. However, a couple of days before her trip, Sue tripped while exiting the back door, cutting her knee and injuring her foot and ankle. Shocked by her fall and in pain, it wasn’t until the following morning that I noticed a swelling on the side of her foot, which should have been bruised but hadn’t discoloured. I took her to the Cottage Hospital for an X-ray, and they confirmed that she had broken a bone in her foot.

Plans for her visit to Worcestershire had to be altered as driving was out of the question. Instead of staying the night at Sheila’s with Philippa, they met up on Sunday, as lunch had been booked at The Fountain, a place we had been to regularly when courting. Jamie volunteered to drive her as he was keen to see where his mother came from. On returning, he was quite impressed with Tenbury and expressed a wish to visit further, though at a warmer time of year.

During the following days, there was no respite from miserably wet and windy days, though uncharacteristically for the time of year, it was warm, the temperature rarely dropping below 12 degrees and often reaching 19 degrees (even at night). Some jobs were attempted outside, mostly sweeping leaves and digging up vegetables from a medium that was once soil and now gave a good impression of Quatermass ooze! One advantage was that the beetroot, kohl rabbi, parsnips and leeks had continued to grow, so a series of pies were made, combining these with chicken or ham, often both, and always with cheese. No one was poisoned, and all wisely professed that they tasted lovely!

On the 10th, Lucas celebrated yet another birthday, his 9th in all. Sue and I wisely decided not to attend any celebrations as they had some friends from Newark staying overnight.

The Rothwells met the Braunstones in Leicester on the 17th Nov. to watch the city’s Christmas lights being switched on.

The Rothwells have had more than their fair share of winter bugs this past month, with sickness and diarrhoea being top of the list. To cheer Charlotte up, I popped over to install a shelf under her oven, which seemed to do the job. I can’t say I would get excited about having another space for storing jars and containers, though!

A few days later, Lucas was sent home from school for throwing up on his class teacher (been there!), and then proceeded to throw up on the dashboard of Charlotte’s car, destroying the £1200 stereo and control system (I kid you not). Kids, eh? Who would have them? On the bright side, Lucas did receive one of three achievement awards for exceptional work at school, no doubt decided on before he emptied the contents of his stomach over a staff member! Or, maybe for his oral accuracy?

On the 10th of December, Sarah dropped Mia off for some R&R as she and Lee were heading off to Venice, Milan, and Lake Garda for a winter break. I had been looking forward to Mia’s stay for the last few weeks, though I’m not sure Sue was quite as enthusiastic. For the next week, each morning I forsook my bike and took my new four-legged friend for a walk, lasting 5-6 hours, covering between 9-12 miles, always with a stop at midday for lunch and a beer. We’d arrive back home in the late afternoon, just as the dark descended. Each day, I left with a clean, sparkly puppy and returned with a tired, muddy, hairy ball of energy who needed a good half-hour scrub in the downstairs bath. Luckily, she enjoyed her baths, and after a madcap race around the house shaking herself to bits, we’d settle down together for a nap.

On Friday, Mia and I drove to Asfordby, near Melton, to walk 11 miles with John Lee, followed by lunch at ‘The Crown‘. John was very impressed with Mia and how well-behaved she was. It was only when we came to dog-unfriendly stiles that we had to pay any attention to her. The rest of the time, her nose never strayed more than a centimetre from the ground as she sniffed the hedgerows and ditches along our route.

 

 

 

 

Each day, as I used my GPS, I sent Sarah and Lee a screenshot via Messenger of the routes we had walked to reassure them that Mia was getting sufficient exercise. During the afternoon, the Braunstones returned to pick Mia up I was attending a Christmas VP’s luncheon at the Rugby Club, but I made sure she had her “walkies” that morning, a short 6-mile sprint just to keep her “in tone.” They had left for home by the time I returned, later that evening.

A few days later, Sarah, Mia and Charlotte came to Harborough and we drove to the pub in Foxton for an enjoyable walk and a splendid lunch.

 

 

On the 17th, Sue and I drove to Kettering to see ‘The Honourable Rebel’, the life story of a remarkable woman, Elizabeth Montague. Afterwards, we visited Charlotte for coffee, then Roger in Braybrooke for another. He had just returned from a holiday in Cyprus and looked a lot better than when he left. He is going through the same distressing times that we experienced this time last year with Nan. Coincidentally, my friends Jim and Sean are in similar situations, as their mothers are also in respite care and not expected to be with us much longer.

On a brighter note, the family is currently busy planning their Christmas surprises for each other, and no doubt all will be revealed on the 25th. It has been difficult working out who will be where over the festive period, now that they are all in one form of work or another. However, we shall still visit the pantomime, go greyhound racing, and gather for a family meal. And who knows what else?