29th July – Last night I went with Scraggies to a Royal Jubilee Concert . My existing wardrobe was insufficient for the red, white and blue dress code – I needed a cheap and cheerful red shirt and blue jeans. Jeans? No problem. Cheap and cheerful red shirt? I couldn’t even find an expensive and serious one – not in Sainsbury, Asda or Next. Not fashionable apparently. I was getting particularly grumpy, when Chas spotted a perfect red white and blue stripy number in Next, and so I was sorted.
Naturally Chas browsed as we shopped, and found some short shorts. Time spent trying them on was totally disproportionate to the size of the item under consideration. Why is the chair outside fitting rooms always located in the ladies lingerie? And more disconcertingly, why, as I sat, did a toddler look me in the eye, reach out, and say “Dada!”?
I needed white shoes, but my white trainers were greenish,thanks to lawn mowing . I found some whitener, and applied the sponge applicator, which promptly disintegrated, pouring white liquid over my trainers and onto our new patio. I could have been in serious trouble here, and I briefly considered blaming a bird with a tummy bug. Fortunately a (very) rapid scrub with a damp cloth removed all evidence.
The pre-concert picnic and Pimms, under a fluttering Union Jack, was excellent. Chris Hayes kindly included me in the picnic she prepared for Richard and her sister. I hate putting picnics together – I have no imagination, whereas Chris excels.
The concert included not just classical pieces, but also popular songs from different periods of the Queens 60 year reign (well, they were popular at the time…), with plenty of singing and flag waving, from Dam Busters March to Rule Britania, and Land of Hope and Glory. I think we should be playing one of these stirring pieces, not the National Anthem, when we win all those Olympc Golds!
Technically we live in Oaktree House, but sadly the tree had to go.
We now have a thriving Oakstump at the front of the house.
