Friday
29 November. I forget
it is Jeffrey's and Cathy's birthday until it is time to go to school! A busy week!
Mild day, hazy sunshine. Mom,
Thomas, Cathy, William and I go to Windsor—no time for anything but a quick
walk around. Then to Waterside Inn for
lunch (£330)—very nice to say the least!
We have foie gras for two (could
be for four) and sole with lobster mousse and a Thierney Chablis. Back to St. John's (200 miles!) The restaurant setting, on the Thames in a
small town, is beautiful in what is obviously late fall. On the river there are many ducks and a few
swans, lots of mud hens. Dad is well
rested when we return. We meet at the
Saffron Walden Hotel at 8 for dinner and open presents—there are big hits all
around—in the lounge. Great birthday
cake, good steak with stilton sauce (or should I say good sauce with OK
steak—the rumps are tough). Mary takes care
of us at the hotel, and says to make
sure we remind her of who we are next time.
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| Birthday Dinner Pictures |
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| Jeffrey's New Vest |
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| Dinner at the Saffron Walden Hotel |
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| Grandpa Bob |
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| The Birthday Boy Endures "the Bumps" |
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| Visiting Windsor Castle |
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| Outside at the Waterside Inn |
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| The Waterside Inn |
Saturday 30 November. I leave at 8 am for St. John's (Robert and
Mara), then drop off my parents and William at Gatwick, and return to St.
John's. About 230 miles roundtrip. We arrive at the airport in plenty of time
(Gatwick is 1 1/2 hours from Cambridge).
Afterwards I have my first bluesy feeling since we left. Back in Saffron Walden I take the boys to
golf lessons and we relax all day. There
is a very cold spell from 2 to 4 pm, though it has been mild all week. We get the coal fire going and watch
"Jaws the Revenge" (Stupid.)
8:45
a.m. My aunt Ruth in hospice not
eating. What an attractive and powerful
idea is the communion of saints: the "banquet table!"
Sunday 1 December. Dad calls at 7:30. They arrived home at 11:30 pm. It's 28 degrees in Las Vegas! We attend 9:15 mass—another noisy First
Communion class, then have a lovely brunch at Tim and Mary Seymour's home in
Littlebury Green. They are now off to
South Africa. I meet David (a law firm
administrator) and his wife. Tim is a
banker, played rugby (touch) and American football and said it was great fun.
Monday 2 December. Another cloudy day. Richard the gardener is here and has just
about got us all weeded and trimmed over the past three weeks for about £200.
Tuesday 3 December. To London by train for a seminar on
environmental law. I walk from Liverpool
St. Station to the seminar then, afterwards, to Regent Street to get some
glasses. How much I love London on a
cloudy day!
8:30
a.m. Food Court, Liverpool Street
Station, which is to be opened officially on Thursday by the Queen. The station remodel is billed as one of the
most extensive London rebuilding projects since World War II.
I've
come into London this morning with the other daily commuters. The silence standing on the platform this
morning and later within the railroad car was deafening! Hardly a word on the platform, and no words
in the car. You would think that, after
many times riding together, people would grow friendly and chat. Next time I'll try first class and see if it
is different.
Ruth
Welker, my father's younger sister, died on Sunday after a lengthy illness,
battling the cancer discovered soon after she and her husband, Jules,
retired. Ruth was my godmother. I'm sure she said a few prayers for me over
the years. I must do the same for her!
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